The Network Strikes Back
by GaDS2000
Summary: Jimmy, Carl, and Sheen thought they had seen the last of Meldar Prime and his brand of shows, but someone is determined to bring them back...whether the galaxy wants them back or not.
1. In a Galaxy Far, Far Away

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Prologue:

_It is a dark time for the sector. Although Meldar Prime and his show _Intergalactic Showdown_ have been overthrown, corporate raiders are determined to return the exploitive and highly profitable genre to galactic programming._

_To that end, these opportunists have financed the construction of the VIDEO STAR, a secret transmitting station with enough power to control the programming on every video channel in the galaxy. Special agents, on secret orders of the First Alliance, have learned of its existence and reported their findings to the Alliance world of Felangie._

_With their plans in peril, the malevolent profiteers have unleashed an all-out secret assault on Felangie as Princess Leama, pursued by their sinister agents, races to warn other members of the Alliance and preserve freedom of the spacewaves…_

The sleek cruiser shuddered as another bolt of energy found its mark, unleashing a shower of sparks and threatening to overload the deflector shield generators. The young Felangian swayed slightly but did not stumble. Over the past several days (as her planet understood the term) her ship had come under attack several times and she had quickly learned how to shift her weight so as to keep her balance. Her quiet demeanor and calm dignity in these times of peril had rapidly earned her the crew's respect and had helped them to harden their own resolve to persevere to the end, come what might.

Her example had not had a calming influence on everyone, however. A small orb about the size of her fist that had been hovering near her left shoulder suddenly circled around to position itself just to the right and in front of her. "Your Highness," it chirped in a high-pitched and somewhat rapid tone.

The princess did not shift her gaze from the starfield on the monitor before her as she answered. "Yes, Bubo?"

"Forgive my impertinence, Your Highness," the orb squeaked as it somehow gave the impression of genuflecting, "but doesn't Your Highness believe that perhaps withdrawal is our wisest course of action?"

Princess Leama smiled to herself at the perpetual fawnings of her personal assistant. "Withdrawal is the wisest course," she replied, "but it is not our best course. We must deliver this data to the First Alliance if we are to rally them against this secret threat."

"Forgive my asking, Your Highness, but how is this a threat?" Bubo swung slowly back and forth through the air. "This new network won't actually be forcing anyone to watch their programming. Does it really matter if their new station comes on-line?"

Another robot which had, up to this time, remained silent and motionless at the princess' side, swiveled its head to regard the orb as it answered. "It matters. Choice always matters, because freedom always matters."

The orb hummed quietly for a few minutes. "That does not compute, Exjay Nine," Bubo concluded at last. "Will not the viewers have a choice to watch or not? Is that not a choice?"

"Not everything that matters computes," Exjay Nine replied. "Some day, perhaps, your circuits will assimilate that."

"Yes," the princess agreed. "Everyone should have a right to have real choices in their lives. My own father believed that, and so do I. That's why I've always tried to -"

The deck rocked again, more violently than before, and Exjay Nine instinctively threw out an arm to protect the princess. She clutched at the metal appendage and with a supreme effort steadied herself before losing her footing. An urgent beeping began to sound from one of the speaker grilles on a control panel.

"What's that noise?" Bubo shrilled.

"We've lost the deflectors," the technician at the panel announced, as though in reply to the small automaton. "They're trying to lock a tractor beam on us." At these words the ship seemed to shiver all over and then was suddenly as solid and unnaturally motionless as a rock. "They've got us," the crewman concluded.

The orb circled around Princess Leama dizzyingly. "We're doomed!" it wailed. "We'll be disassembled for sure!"

"As you were, Bubo!" the princess snapped. She faced Exjay Nine and spoke to him in low tones as the crew broke out sidearms and streamed off the bridge to take up battle stations. "Listen to me, Exjay Nine. This is of utmost importance. You have the necessary information to pass on to the Alliance. You must find the Royal Guard on Felangie or one of the Alliance worlds and pass it on to them to deliver for me. They're the only ones I can trust, now. Do you understand?"

"I'm not certain I do, Your Highness," the robot replied. "But if that is what you wish, I will obey. But surely I will be taken as well, or destroyed."

Princess Leama shook her head. "No. I want you to conceal yourself -"

"What about me?" whined Bubo. "Don't I count?"

The princess glanced quickly at the orb and then turned her attention back to Exjay Nine. "Forgive me, Bubo. I want you and Bubo to conceal yourselves in one of the main corridor lockers. When they scan the ship after they capture everyone they'll find nothing. Just to be sure they'll hull it to ensure that no organics are left alive but the vacuum won't harm either of you. I'm certain that…"

The sound of distant blaster fire slowly drawing closer distracted her for a moment. For the merest fraction of an instant the cool, dignified mask dropped to reveal a young and frightened Felangian girl. Then she mastered herself and continued with her instructions.

"I'm certain that they will not destroy the ship. My disappearance without any trace would be too suspicious. They'll probably make it appear as though pirates or outlaws scuttled the vessel, but it should still be operable. I want you to take it and find the Royal Guard. Do you understand?"

Exjay Nine nodded. "I do."

If Bubo could have frowned the little orb would have done so. "I don't."

Princess Leama shook her head at Bubo and smiled and smiled at Exjay Nine, seeming to be relieved and almost light-hearted. "Good. Let's get you two hidden."

Together the three of them proceeded off the bridge and down the main corridor. About halfway down she opened a locker, assisted the two automata inside, and then closed and locked the hatch. She then backtracked down the passageway and waited. The sounds of battle drew closer but decreased in volume as the heavily outnumbered defenders were steadily overcome. It wasn't long before two figures, clad in armored environmental suits rounded the intersection and leveled unmistakably lethal firearms on her.

"Hello," she said pleasantly. "It's so nice to have a change from the flowers that visitors always bring me."

The two figures stared at her, unnerved by her studied composure, and then stared at each other. As they hesitated, unsure of what to do, they were flung aside by a large, hulking figure in black who had come up from behind them. At the sight of the princess the new arrival paused and then advanced with slow, deliberate steps. The apparition did not appear to be armed, but it worried the princess far more than the squad of heavily armed troopers that followed behind. The dark shape stopped in front of Princess Leama, towering over her, and motioned the others to check out the bridge behind her.

"Your Highness," the ominous intruder rumbled, the voice grating harshly like gravel being crushed beneath a steamroller.

Princess Leama tried to keep her voice steady. "Have we met?" she asked.

"Up to now I have not had the pleasure, Your Highness. You may address me as Lord Versile. Perhaps you've heard of me."

She had heard the name before. It was whispered among the Royal Guard the way human children whisper about boogeymen and ghosts. Even the High Captain of the Royal Guard did not speak openly of him. "I've heard," was her terse reply, "but nothing to your credit."

Lord Versile looked up as the squad returned from their inspection of the bridge. "Nothing," the squad leader reported. "Scans show no other persons aboard."

"Excellent," the dark lord replied. "Then we have them all. Breach the hull to evacuate all atmosphere just in case any passengers were missed. Then send out a distress signal and set her adrift. It will appear as though the princess and her entourage has met with an most unfortunate fate, completely unrelated to the Network."

"Why keep them alive?" the squad leader asked. "Why not just terminate them?" Lord Versile fixed the trooper with a sinister glare, the dark lenses of his armored mask glinting in the glow of the overhead lighting panels. He made no move, but the squad leader fell back as thought struck. "I was just asking," the soldier whimpered unhappily.

"You won't get away with this," the princess told Lord Versile. "You're subterfuge won't fool anyone. When my Royal Guard find out -"

A low growl that might actually have been amused laughter emanated from the dark form looming above Princess Leama. "I'm afraid that won't be possible," he told her in mock sorrow. "Some time before we boarded you vessel, I received word from our forces at Felangie that the Royal Guard is no more. You should have known that really are disadvantages to maintaining absolute radio silence, even when one is on a mission as secret as yours. And you should really have kept them at home with you , rather than out spying, and avoided all this unpleasantness." The massive head moved forward until it was only inches from the Felangian's face, making her shudder involuntarily. "I'm afraid that you're really quite alone now, Princess."

"I've never been alone," she spat back defiantly. "And I never will be. Never."

Lord Versile simply straightened and motioned to his men to take the princess in charge. As they led her away and he followed, he paused and looked around uncertainly. For an endless time he scrutinized the hallway, as if searching from something, but finally shrugged and marched away. His echoing footsteps died away, followed soon by the rapidly fading sounds of atmosphere leaking away into the vacuum of space.

Perhaps an hour after the last sounds in the ship died away the door of a locker in the main corridor appeared to explode silently outward, forced out by an inhumanly strong metal arm. Exjay Nine slowly unfolded and extricated himself from the small compartment and waited patiently for the small spherical form of Bubo to emerge after him.

"What now?" Bubo electronically signaled his companion.

Exjay Nine made his way towards the bridge without comment and began to re-activate the navigation systems.

"What are you doing?" Bubo asked as star charts took shape on the forward monitor.

Exjay Nine pressed several buttons, isolating one arm of the spiral galaxy on the display, then one whisp of the arm, and then on small cluster of stars. "Following the Princess's orders," the robot replied tersely.

"What orders?"

"To find the Royal Guard." Exjay Nine caressed a few more controls and the selection of starts thinned from hundreds to dozens, then to several, and finally to one.

Bubo squeaked in electronic confusion. "But you heard what Lord Versile told the princess. The Felangian Royal Guard are all gone!"

"No." The robot touched a final control and a planet centered in the navigation reticule, a breathtakingly beautiful image of blue and green and white, turning slowly in the warm glow of a yellow star, the third planet in the system. "There is another."

End of Prologue

Author's Notes:

Well, I'm finally back! And I hope that this story will be worth the wait. For anyone who hasn't read "The Eye of the Llama" this will prologue will make no sense whatsoever at this point, but even without reading that predecessor to this tale everything will make sense in time. I'm hoping to update fairly quickly, so bear with me for a little bit to come up to speed.


	2. Called to Serve

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 2:

"It's okay, Carl," Jimmy reassured his friend. "Let's try it again."

"Okay, Jimmy," Carl answered with considerably less confidence. "I'll do my best."

Sheen sighed. It was almost lunchtime on Saturday and the three of them had been in the Neutron back yard since 9:00 AM. "It's about time you did. We've been here for hours."

Jimmy glared at his other friend to silence him before going on. "What's the capital of Oklahoma?"

Carl thought carefully. "Oklahoma City?"

"Very good. How about Nevada?"

"Umm…Nevada City?"

Jimmy shook his head. "Try again."

"Yeah, Carl," Sheen criticized. "There's no such place as Nevada City."

Jimmy came to the defense of his friend. "Sure there is. It's in California."

"Oh, right," Sheen scoffed, unconvinced. "Just like Virginia City is in, like, Maryland or something."

"No, actually that one _is_ in Nevada," Jimmy said.

"Is it the capital?" Carl asked hopefully.

"No," was Jimmy's terse reply.

Carl flopped over backwards. "It's hopeless," he moaned. "I'll never learn the state capitals by Monday."

"Well, technically," Sheen said thoughtfully, "you only need to know 60 of them to pass. That's what I always shoot for. Successfully, I might add."

Carl sat up again. "Hey, that's an idea. How many state capitals would that be?"

"Twenty-five," Sheen told him.

Jimmy sighed. "Actually, it would be thirty."

Sheen looked shocked. "Thirty? I have to learn…" He stopped and did some figuring with his fingers. "…five more states? You mean I have to do more studying on my geography?"

"Not to mention your math," Carl offered helpfully.

It was Sheen who flopped over backwards this time. "It's hopeless!" he lamented. "There's no way I'll learn five more state capitals before Monday. My brain is already full!"

"Carl, Sheen, relax," Jimmy soothed. "We're best friends, remember? And I promise that I'll be there to help you through this no matter what or how long it takes. That's what friends do." He held out his hand. "Friends forever."

Carl placed his hand on Jimmy's. "The Three Amigops."

Sheen put in his hand as well with a wide grin. "One for all, and all for one."

"Great," Jimmy smiled. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to go."

Sheen and Carl stared in shock at Jimmy. "What?" they asked together.

"Guys, I'm sorry," Jimmy told them. "But I promised that I'd have lunch in the park with her this afternoon. It's part of an agreement we made to ease the competitive tension between us and establish more normal relations."

"And just where is that written?" Sheen asked.

Jimmy pulled a sheaf of folded papers from his back pocket. "Right here. It's Item 29 on our binding List of Viable Exigencies Treaty of 2005."

Carl took the papers and examined them. "Hey, Jimmy. Did you know that if you looked at just the first letters at the top it spells LOVE Treaty?"

"No it doesn't!" Jimmy protested. He went over the first page of the treaty in his mind and then snatched the papers back from Carl. "Let me see that!"

Sheen looked over Jimmy's shoulder as Jimmy stared at the first page in disbelief. "Looks like Carl is right, Jimmy," he said sympathetically. "Cindy got you looped into a love treaty."

"It's not a love treaty!" Jimmy snapped. "I don't care what the first letters spell. That's just a coincidence, is all. This is a simply a formal agreement to normalize relations between us, just like the SALT meetings between the U.S. and Soviet Union."

Carl blinked. "The what meetings?"

"The SALT meetings. It stands for the Strategic Arms Limitation Talks meetings, but everyone refers to them as the SALT meetings because it's simpler."

"Oh, right." Sheen folded his arms behind his back and paced slowly back and forth in front of Jimmy. "And just how do you think Cindy will refer to this particular agreement when she talks to people?"

"Well…maybe she'd call it the LOVE treaty…if she talked about it at all…but she wouldn't…I mean, she couldn't…Item 46 specifically prohibits the discussion of personal matters between us with third parties without the express consent of both parties." With a cry of disgust Jimmy fell backwards on the ground, unconvinced by his reasoning. "What have I done?" he wailed. "How could I have been so stupid?"

"Don't take it so hard, Jimmy," Carl said. "It wasn't your fault."

"I'll say," Sheen agreed emphatically. "Those females will do anything to confuse us and disguise their true schemes to trap us desirable males. Alluring clothing…accentuating jewelry…feature-enhancing make-up…two-for-one coupons at the Candy Bar…"

"Tasty lemon cookies…" Carl added dreamily. He stopped and looked around him. "Does anybody hear that?"

"Hear what?" Jimmy asked listlessly, too absorbed in his predicament to really care.

"That whistling noise."

Sheen listened intently. "You mean that sound like when someone drops an anvil in a cartoon and it's about to hit somebody?"

Carl nodded vigorously. "Exactly." The two stared at each other and then looked up, their expressions changing from passive bewilderment to active alarm.

"Look out!" Sheen yelled, pushing Carl away and then diving aside himself. Jimmy, on his back and staring up at the sky, saw a dark round silhouette growing rapidly larger and found the presence of mind just in time to roll out of the way himself. The whistling grew louder and all three boys braced for the sound and shock of a violent impact.

When none came each of them opened their eyes to take a peek. Resting on the ground between them was a metallic sphere, about 8 feet across and devoid of features save what seemed to be an intricate geometric marking in some golden alloy. Jimmy rose to his feet to cautiously approach the sphere and held his palm several inches from the polished surface. "No warmth," he commented. "Whatever it is either didn't fall far enough for the friction of air resistance to have any effect, or it was undergoing a controlled descent." He peered closely at the marking and rubbed his forehead thoughtfully. "I wonder what this means?"

"Maybe it means, 'Danger! Face-eating monsters inside!'" suggested Sheen.

"You don't have to sound so hopeful," Carl chided him.

Jimmy shook his head. "It doesn't appear to be writing. More like a symbol or crest of some kind." He put out a finger to touch it. "Funny. It looks familiar, but I can't quite place it."

Sheen and Carl moved closer to take a look themselves. "Hey, I know where I've seen that," announced Carl.

"You do? Where?" Sheen sounded surprised.

"On that ring I got from Princess Leama back when we were on Felangie. I was supposed to wear it whenever I had to go there and do official guard duty and stuff."

Jimmy snapped his fingers. "That's it! I remember now. It's the Official Seal of the Royal House of Felangie. All the Royal Guard wear them. This must be some sort of royal summons."

"Yeah, but for who?" Sheen rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "Or, perhaps…"

"Perhaps what?" asked Carl in apprehension.

"Or, perhaps," Sheen went on, "'for whom'?"

In answer to this there was the rushing sound of air as four lines, defining a rectangle about five feet high and three feet wide, appeared around the symbol. Jimmy, Sheen, and Carl stepped back as a hatchway swung down and out to allow a metallic form to exit the craft.

"Exjay Nine!" Jimmy cried out in recognition.

"What he said," Sheen added.

"Greetings to you both, Jimmy and Master Estevez. And to Sir Wheezer of the Felangian Royal Guard from Her Highness Princess Leama, greetings."

A small levitating orb that neither Jimmy, Sheen, nor Carl had noticed detached itself from Exjay Nine and made several loops around Carl before returning. "This is it?" it chirped with what sounded very much like human incredulity.

"Sir Wheezer has served Her Highness faithfully and well in the past, Bubo" was Exjay Nine's response. I have full confidence he will do so again."

"Again?" Jimmy asked. "What do you mean, 'again'?"

Although robots had no lungs and could not sigh Exjay Nine managed to make a sound very much like it. "Her Highness has instructed me to deliver a message to the Royal Guard," the robot replied. "She wished me to inform the recipient that it was to be delivered to the First Alliance."

"But why come here?" Jimmy asked. "Why not give it to the guards on Felangie?"

"I am very much afraid that the others of the Royal Guard have all been defeated," Exjay Nine replied. "Sir Wheezer is the last. I am aware that he is an honorary guardsman, but he is a member of the Royal Guard nonetheless. He is Princess Leama's last hope."

Carl looked puzzled. "Her last hope for what?"

"I am not certain. Several cycles ago Her Highness received an urgent message from some guardsmen she had entrusted with a secret mission for the First Alliance. Almost immediately she embarked on a voyage to contact others in the alliance with what she had been told. We were still in departure orbit when we were attacked by armed vessels and we received word from Felangie that the planet was also under attack. We succeeded in evading our attackers and our ship had nearly made it to Gorlock when our cruiser was seized and boarded by Lord Versile and his troops. The princess was captured, leaving Bubo and I to carry on with the mission. The princess was most insistent, however, that our message be taken to one of the Royal Guard for delivery to the Alliance."

"Why not just send use standard stellacommunications to deliver the message?" asked Jimmy. "Wouldn't that have been faster?"

"Although I do not know the details," Exjay Nine replied, "the mission and message involved a new galactic network that is attempting to take control of all broadcasts. We dared not use any forms of long-range electronic communications for fear that they would be intercepted. I believe that Princess Leama also feared that there were spies even within the Alliance so that using even strong encryption would have been a risk. That is why I believe she wished that only the Royal Guard be entrusted with the information. She told me specifically that the Royal Guard were the only ones she could trust now.

"As an honorary member of the Royal Guard," Exjay Nine continued, turning to Carl, "you are not technically obligated to engage in potentially military operations. But you are the last. I cannot deliver the message to any other. If the information is not delivered, I fear that Princess Leama's last mission will have been in vain and the Network will triumph." The robot paused for what must have been eons of computer time before proceeding. "I fear for her safety. I fear for us all."

Sheen asked the obvious question. "Is Earth in danger?"

"Unlikely at this time," replied Exjay Nine. "Earth is not an official member of the Alliance and does not use the technology that the Network seeks to dominate."

"Not officially, anyway" Jimmy muttered to himself.

Bubo moved to hover in front of Carl. "Well?" it piped.

"Well, the thing is," Carl hemmed and hawed in a weak voice, "I have this geography test on Monday to study for, and that's going to take up most of this weekend, so…"

Exjay Nine displayed no emotion at Carl's response. "I understand, Sir Wheezer. I have done my best to fulfill my duty and officially can add nothing more. But, unofficially, I would like to add something that I believe the princess would say were she here with you. I do not fully understand it, but perhaps you will."

"And what would that be?" asked Sheen.

The robot simply leaned forward so that its photoreceptors were within inches of Carl's. Then, from its vocalizer, came the sound of a distinctly feminine voice. "Please?"

Carl had not heard Princess Leama's voice in months, but recognized it immediately. With the voice came memories of another time when the fate of a world had once before hung on him and the simple trust of a girl had been all that had carried him through. The abstract ideas of duty, honor, and nobility were fuzzy concepts to him, but he was no stranger to them. More importantly, a friend was once again trusting him to help her, and he could not turn way. "All right," he said with a sudden conviction that surprised Jimmy and Sheen. "I'll do it. So what if I don't know that Reno is the capital of Nevada on Monday?"

"It isn't," Jimmy, Sheen, Exjay Nine, and Bubo replied together.

Carl looked disappointed, but not for long. "Oh, whatever. Who's with me?"

Jimmy and Sheen looked at each other and then stuck their hands out. "The Three Amigops!" they declared.

Exjay Nine and Bubo especially seemed taken aback by this. "Are you…humans…volunteering to help us?" Bubo squeaked.

"Yes," Jimmy answered. "But first, we're going to need to find some more help."

End of Chapter 2

Author's Notes:

As some may have concluded from the title, this is indeed a parody (of sorts) of _Star Wars_, with a few subtle references to some other movies and shows. The most obvious is Exjay Nine, who was first introduced in "The Eye of the Llama" and is a nod to "My Life As a Teenage Robot." Another is Bubo, which is the name of the owl in _Clash of the Titans_ (although _Bubo_ itself is the genus of owls).


	3. What If They Gave a War

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 3:

Jimmy and the others retired to Jimmy's lab to plan their strategy. The threat of an interstellar conspiracy was not an everyday occurrence even for an 11-year-old genius, but Jimmy had better than average coping skills. Reason told him that those best able to assist him would be those whose very existence was devoted to thwarting the plans of hostile forces. It was not a great intellectual feat to narrow the field down to various government organizations, and a quick search of the Greater Retroville phone book narrowed the possibilities even further as only a handful of the government offices listed were open on Saturday. The first on the list was the Unites States Military Recruiting Office. After two rings the Jimmy heard the phone being answered.

"Sergeant Able, Marine Corps," the voice on the other end said.

"Hello, Sergeant? I need to reach the military right away," Jimmy asked.

"Son, the Marines _are_ the military," Sergeant Able replied crisply. "We've been around longer than the United States of America itself. Most people don't know it, but -"

"Yes, I know," Jimmy interrupted. "The United States Marines were created by an act of the Continental Congress on November 10th, 1775, more than six months before the Declaration of Independence was signed."

There was a low whistle from the other end of the line. "Son, you have obviously done your homework on the Corps, and I know you're smart enough to know that you made the right choice. I would be proud to shake your hand, right after you come down here and sign your enlistment papers."

"Hey, just remember, he's entitled to hear what we have to say!" Jimmy heard a voice in the background call out.

"Stow that, you chowderheads!" Sergeant Able bellowed to whoever had spoken. "You snooze, you lose." Then, in a more civil tone, he turned his attention back to Jimmy. "Sorry about that. Some of the toy soldiers in the other branches were getting a little out of line. Where were we?"

"Sergeant," Jimmy said urgently, "we have an emergency. I've received information that affects the very security of this country. The entire world, in fact."

"Sounds serious, all right. What did you say your full name was?"

"James Isaac Neutron."  
"James…Isaac…Neutron…" Sergeant Able repeated slowly. "Is that spelled with a 'C' or a 'K'?"

Jimmy sounded puzzled. "A 'C'. Why?"

"Just filling out some forms for you."

"Sergeant, there's no time -" Jimmy began.

"Exactly!" the sergeant agreed emphatically. "Why waste time filling them all out after you get here? Especially when I can do most of it for you in advance?"

"No, that's not what I mean!" Jimmy tried again desperately. "There's a hostile force threatening the security of this country and the military needs to act before it's too late!"

Something in Jimmy's voice got through to Sergeant Able. "Hostile force?" he asked. "Whose?"

"I'm not exactly sure," Jimmy admitted, "but they're somewhere in the Hyades Cluster."

"Hyades Cluster," the Marine sergeant repeated slowly. "Is that in the Med?"

"The Med? Oh, you mean the Mediterranean Ocean. No, it's about 150 light-years away, in Taurus. This time of year you can probably see it best about an hour after midnight." This was followed by an uncomfortably long silence, which prompted Jimmy to say, "Hello? Sergeant Able?"

"Let me see if I understand you," Sergeant Able finally responded in an oddly quiet tone of voice. "This hostile force is somewhere in Taurus?" His voice grew a little more strained. "The _constellation_ Taurus? As in my mother's _Zodiac sign_ Taurus?"

Jimmy felt uncomfortable without really knowing why. "Well…I'm not sure about your mother's Zodiac sign, but if she was born between April 20th and May 20th, yes."

This was followed by yet another long pause, during which Jimmy could hear the sounds of something being torn up. "I'm going to pass you on to Sergeant Yeager, of the Air Force," Sergeant Able told Jimmy in a conspiratorial whisper. "I think that these sort of matters are more in his line of work. Project Blue Book and all that, you know."

"No, wait!" Jimmy pleaded. "I'm not –"

"Sergeant Yeager here," a no-nonsense voice announced on the phone. "How can I help you?"

"Sergeant," Jimmy said, "I was speaking with Sergeant Able about a matter of national security. It's vitally important that someone there believes me."

"You sound terribly serious," the man on the other end said. "That's good. The Air Force needs men who are serious about their futures. 'You can't keep 'em flying if the men don't keep trying', that's my motto."

"Yes sir," Jimmy said, "but the reason I'm calling is -"

"No need to 'sir' me," the sergeant replied. "Call me 'Sarge'. I'm an NCO, so I work for a living. And let me tell you that there's no better life for a serious young man than the Air Force." There was a brief silence. "What are you snickering about, Able?" Jimmy heard Sergeant Yeager demand.

"Sir – I mean, Sarge – I have nothing but respect for the Air Force. But -"

"Yessir," the Air Force recruiter went on. "As an enlisted man in the Air Force you will have the respect not only of your peers and family, but of the officers under which you serve. They do the fighting, but they know just how important the crews are to keep their birds in the air. Now then, you said your name was Neutron, James Isaac?"

"Yes, Sarge, but I've got to warn you. I have to warn everyone. There's a distant but serious threat that the Armed Forces needs to deal with."

"Distance is not an issue with the Air Force," Sergeant Yeager assured Jimmy. "We can hit them anywhere, anytime. Europe, Africa, Asia…Where exactly is this 'distant threat' that a civilian such as yourself is concerned about?"

Jimmy hesitated, not wanting to alienate a possible ally. "About 150 light-years, actually."

"150…light-years, you said?" The sergeant considered this. "And just for clarification, in what direction would those light-years be?"

"Straight up, more or less, once we get the ships launched." Jimmy winced at this, but he had to be truthful.

"I see." Over the phone came a rhythmic thudding noise as Sergeant Yeager drummed his fingers on the desk. "Well, now, Mr. Neutron, ships aren't really something the Air Force deals with. That's more of a Navy matter. Let me put you on with CPO Finney. I'm sure that he'll be happy to discuss this further with you. Hey, Chief!" Jimmy heard the sergeant call out. "There's someone on the phone who wants to speak with you!"

Jimmy tiredly rubbed his eyes and waited. A few seconds later he heard a voice say, "Chief Petty Officer Finney. With whom am I speaking?"

"This is Jimmy Neutron, and I -"

"Well, Jimmy, the man in blue said you were interested in ships. A good choice."

"Thank you, but -"

"Yessir, a very good choice," CPO Finney continued, not waiting to hear Jimmy's clarification. "You think that the Air Force takes you places? On one of our state-of-the-art vessels you'll see a new place almost every day. Of course, most of it looks the same when you're at sea, but when you make port let me tell you it's an education no paid cruise can offer. You'll see the _world_, not some sanitized tourist attraction. You understand? Got a girl, Neutron?"

"Yes. I mean, no. That is, yes, I understand what you're saying, but no, I don't really have a girl. Not really…I think." The thought of the LOVE Treaty still bothered Jimmy.

The chief petty officer laughed. "Well, no worries about that, sailor. Women can't resist a man in uniform, and you'll have your pick of them all over the world. A girl in every port, if you get me. And there are hundreds of ports just waiting for you."

With all the problems he had had with just Cindy the thought of hundreds of girls all over the world waiting for him made Jimmy recoil and nearly nauseated him. He almost missed the next words the recruiter on the phone was saying.

"So, shall we have you come down, sign the forms, and make it all official?"

"Uh…Chief Petty Officer Finney…the reason I'm calling is to try and alert the Armed Forces to a significant threat they must be dealt with immediately."

"No worries," CPO Finney assured Jimmy. "The Navy can handle anything on a moment's notice. Our carriers can launch a devastating strike against Threat forces anywhere in the world in 24 hours or less."

"That's great. But the threat isn't actually in the world. Our troops would be fighting out in space somewhere."

The voice was curiously calm and restrained. "In space?"

Jimmy nodded. "Yes."

"And our troops would be fighting there?"

Jimmy recognized the finality of the tone and heaved a heavy sigh. "More than likely, yes."

"Hmm…interesting. Very interesting. You know," CPO Finney said suddenly with forced enthusiasm, "when it comes to troops fighting, I think the Iinfantry is probably your best choice. Let me see if I can find Sergeant York. He's the Army recruiter and he's probably the person you really want to speak with."

There was a clatter and the receiver was set on the desk and Jimmy waited patiently, albeit with considerably less enthusiasm than he had originally felt when he had initiated the call some five minutes earlkier. After what seemed a long wait Jimmy heard the receiver being picked up. "Hello?"

"Sergeant York here," a voice replied. "The chief said you wanted the Infantry."

"Yes, I guess I did." Jimmy answered.

"Never guess, soldier," Sergeant York barked. "The Infantry is the _only_ service you want. Let the other services say what they will, but there has never been and never will be an armed conflict without the Infantry playing a key role."

"That's good," said Jimmy, "because -"

Sergeant York was just as insistent on getting his point across as his compatriots had been. "Nossir. Fancy scientific gadgets and new-fangled machines and special task forces have their place now and again, but when the going gets tough, who are you going to call?"

Jimmy took a wild guess. "Ghostbusters?"

"The Infantry, that's who! The regular grunts, the dogfaces, the G.I. Joes! The same mudfeet that slogged their way from Bunker Hill to Normandy and beyond. When there's a job to be done, the Infantry will do it, anytime, anywhere."

"That's good," Jimmy put in, "because there's an emergency brewing in the Hyades Cluster that has to be dealt with right away, and we need a good military force to put an end to it."

The sergeant thought about that. "The Hyades Cluster? Sounds familiar. Is that near the Tropic of Cancer?"

"Not exactly. It's actually in the Taurus group."

"Don't you worry, boy. If there's going to be a scrap you can bet that the Infantry will be there. And you can be a part of it. All you have to do is come down and fill out a few forms to seal the deal."

"Well, that would be kind of hard," Jimmy explained. "You see, I have to work on getting the rocket ships prepared for the voyage and that's going to keep me busy for a while. How many men do you think will be going?"

"Rocket ships?" The sergeant sounded as though he had found a live lizard in his soup. "What in the name of Fort Ticonderoga are you talking about?"

Jimmy sighed and tried to collect his thoughts before continuing. "Well, it's like this. The menace is about 150 light-years in space, so the military will have to travel there in space ships to be able to fight. I figure that with the government's assistance I can probably modify some of the military's current rockets to carry a hundred or so troops, so I just need to know just how many you figure will be going so I know how many to prepare."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa!" The voice one the phone did some frantic back-pedaling. "As the saying goes the army travels on its stomach. If you need to transport troops in ships, then I'd say that the Marines are more in line with what you need. Hey, Able!" Jimmy heard Sergeant York call. "There's someone on the phone who needs to speak to you."

"I already spoke with him," Sergeant Able called back from the background. "I say that the Air Force should deal with it."

"Says you!" said another voice that Jimmy recognized as Sergeant Yeager. "The Air Force wants nothing to do with this. Let the Navy take care of it."

Jimmy could hear CPO Finney snort at that. "When Marines learn to read. It's your problem, York."

"I say it isn't!"

"And I say all of you are full of beans!"

"Oh, yeah?"

"Yeah!"

"Put 'em up, you -"

"The day I can't handle a gorilla like you -"

"Just hold still, pretty boy -"

"This'll only hurt a minute -"

Jimmy held the receiver away from his ear as the sounds of smashing and scuffling came over the line. With a dejected, "Never mind," he replaced the instrument on its base and turned to face his companions.

"So?" Sheen asked expectantly. "How soon can we expect them?"

End of Chapter 3


	4. And Nobody Came?

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 4:

"I can't believe that the military isn't taking this seriously," Jimmy complained bitterly. "Considering how many alerts I've personally been responsible for you'd think that they'd at least pass me on to one of their superiors."

"Hey, no worries, Jimmy," Sheen said. "Maybe one of these other places will listen."

Carl peered at the phone listings he had underlined. "Let's see…we've ruled out the United States

Armed Forces Recruiting Center. How about the United States Army Corps of Engineers?"

Jimmy didn't even look up. "Only if they could build a bridge from here to the Hyades Cluster."

Unfazed, Carl continued down the list to the next marked entry. "The next one is the United States Postal Service. Do you think they'd help us?"

Sheen glanced over Carl's shoulder and shook his head. "Not likely. It's says it's only for Express Mail delivery. And the cost for overnight delivery out of the county is pretty steep." He rolled his eyes. "Trust me."

"Oh. Okay." Carl tried the last one. "Well, how about the United States Tax Help Hotline?"

"I don't think so, Carl," was all Jimmy said.

"Could we call them anyway?" Sheen asked. "I've been thinking about using the equity on my Ultra Lord collectibles to invest in some short-term municipal bonds for a Roth IRA and was wondering if declaring the annual depreciation of the collection as a capital loss would incur some kind of penalty."

"Face it, guys," Jimmy complained bitterly. "The government isn't going to help us on this one. It looks like we're sunk."

"How about calling Commander Baker and asking for help from BTSO?" suggested Carl.

Jimmy shook his head. "I don't have his number. Ever since the Big Top Secret Organization was voted the world's best-known secret organization they've been trying to keep a low profile."

"Well," Sheen offered thoughtfully, "how about trying the cheerleader with the Web site? You know, that girl who can do anything?"

Carl looked skeptical and snorted. "What good could one girl do, Sheen?"

Sheen simply grinned and smoothed the short hair on his head. "Hey, you've seen her. She can do anything with me anytime she wants, that's all I know."

Exajy Nine who had been standing silently by the entire time spoke. "If I might say so, Jimmy, I feel that you've done more than enough with your efforts to help us. Princess Leama certainly did not intend to have your lives disrupted like this. As I have indicated, even Sir Carl is technically exempt from her instructions. It appears that this was a hopeless mission from the start."

"I thought as much," Bubo piped up. "But at least we tried."

"No!" Carl said, pounding a fist into his open hand so emphatically that even Jimmy turned to stare at him. "Princess Leama wanted this done. Even if I wasn't an honorary member of the Royal Guard, she's still my friend. It's my duty to help her any way I can. And I'm going to, no matter what." His voice suddenly became small. "Somehow."

"And just how are you going to do that?" Sheen asked him. "Have a bake sale?"

Carl's words had started Jimmy thinking. "Friends," he repeated softly. "Maybe that's it."

"I beg your pardon?" asked Exjay Nine.

"We'll ask our friends to help!" Jimmy exclaimed. "I mean, it was just our friends from school that beat the Yolkians when they kidnapped our parents. Why can't they help us now?"

"Yeah!" Carl said hopefully. "They'll help us, won't they?"

Now it was Sheen who looked skeptical. "On a _weekend_? I don't know about that. Now, maybe if it was a chance to get out of school for a while, like before…"

"Sure, they'll help," Jimmy insisted, becoming more convinced with each word. "All we have to do is get them together and explain the situation, and they're sure to understand. I just need to call Cindy and ask her to -" At the mention of Cindy's name Jimmy suddenly stopped and slapped his forehead. "Leaping leptons!" he cried. "I was supposed to meet her in the park a half hour ago! She is going to be so ticked!"

"Miss Vortex, sir?" asked Exjay Nine. "Do you believe she can help?"

"Of course," Jimmy told the robot. "I mean, she was on Felangie, wasn't she? And she knows Princess Leama, right? How could she refuse?" He jumped to his feet and started for the exit. "You guys stay here. I'll go see Cindy and arrange for her to get everyone together at the Candy Bar to discuss this."

Cindy was still waiting for Jimmy at the entrance to the park but the half hour had not softened her disposition towards him. "It's about time!" she snapped. "Are you naturally inconsiderate? Or is that head of yours so big that it needs its own time zone?"

"Sorry," Jimmy apologized between pants. He had run the entire way and the unaccustomed exertion had left him out of breath. "Emergency."

Cindy simply folded her arms and began to tap one foot as Jimmy gasped for breath. "What was it this time, Brain Boy? Forget to carry the one in one of your equations? Or did the batteries in your calculator die?"

Jimmy shook his head, ignoring the sarcastic skepticism in Cindy's voice. "Princess…Leama," he managed to get out. "Needs…Carl."

Cindy's mood changed from belligerence to bewilderment. _Princess Leama?_ she thought. _What's up with her? And why would she want Carl?_ She waited impatiently for Jimmy to resume breathing normally and clarify things.

"It's like this," Jimmy told her after several more labored moments. "Princess Leama has uncovered some kind of interstellar conspiracy. She was trying to warn the other planets in the Alliance, but was captured on the way. Exjay Nine managed to escape with orders to contact the Royal Guard, but Carl's the only one left. I'm trying to get more people to help. I've already tried the military and had no luck. I need you to get all the kids together at the Candy Bar so I can explain it to them and get them ready to go."

Jimmy couldn't quite interpret the expressions that crossed Cindy's face during his explanation nor any of those that followed for several minutes afterwards. Finally all she said was, "Are you nuts?"

This was one response Jimmy hadn't expected. "Huh?"

"Don't get me wrong," Cindy went on, pacing back and forth in front of him. "I mean, I like Lee as much as anyone. But do you really think a bunch of grade schoolers are going to be willing or able to go into outer space and take on something that's a threat to the Alliance?"

"Hye, we did okay against the Yolkians," spluttered Jimmy, "and we were even younger then."

Cindy stopped her pacing and confronted Jimmy. "That was different!" she argued. "They'd kidnapped our parents. We were their only hope."

Jimmy for his part refused to give up. "Then what about Meldar Prime? We stopped him and there were only the five of us and a few Gorlocks, Brains, and Needleheads. How about that?"

"Yes, how about that?" Cindy countered. "If you hadn't been messing around with that rock we wouldn't have been in that mess in the first place. And for that matter, we wouldn't have had to deal with the Yolkians if you hadn't launched that communications toaster of yours!"

"Communications satellite!" objected Jimmy.

"Whatever. But did you ever stop to think that maybe, just maybe, these outer space aliens wouldn't bother us if we just stayed on Earth and left them alone?"

"You mean like when Carl was kidnapped and we had to go rescue him? He was minding his own business, remember?"

"Yes, I remember," Cindy said, her voice becoming a sub-arctic wind. "And I also remember that they only messed with him because they'd seen him on that _Intergalactic Showdown_ game show that you got us mixed up in."

"Even so -" Jimmy tried.

"But even so, you won't be satisfied until the facts are so plain that even you could trip over them at high noon. Okay. Fine. Let's get everyone together and see what they have to say." Cindy yanked her cell phone from her purse and began dialing. In five minutes she had called everyone on her phone list, and ten minutes later they were gathered in the Candy Bar. Cindy had told them nothing, beyond the meeting being an important one, and they eyed Jimmy quizzically as he stood up to address them.

"Hi, everyone," he said awkwardly. "I'm really glad you agreed to meet here. There's an emergency, and…well, we really need your help."

"What's the big emergency, Neutron?" asked Nick. "And who's 'we'?"

"Both excellent questions, Nick," Jimmy replied, attempting to build some rapport with the crowd. "The answer to the first is that there's a big threat to the First Alliance. And the answer to the second is that 'we' are they. I mean, me and the First Alliance."

Butch raised his hand. "What kind of threat?"

"I actually don't know," admitted Jimmy. "But they wouldn't have contacted us unless it was serious."

"So, are we in danger?" asked Libby.

"Well…" Jimmy fidgeted but couldn't tell an outright lie. "No. Not at the moment, apparently. But," he called out over noise as the others stirred restlessly, "that could change at any time. I mean, a threat to peace anywhere is a threat to peace everywhere, right? And they're our friends." His voice took on a pleading tone. "What I mean is, they're my friends. They need you." The next few words could barely be heard in the silence that followed. "I need you. Please?"

Despite her earlier argument with him, Jimmy's plaintive tone was almost more than Cindy could bear. It was Nick, however, who spoke first.

"I dunno, Neutron," he said, stretching his arms behind his head. "If they were attacking Earth, I'd be first to help out. But we're talking about things that are jillions of miles away."

Jimmy couldn't help correcting him. "Quadrillions."

"Whatever. But even if we do want to help, what could we do? Throw tomatoes at them?"

"No, not at all." Now that he could discuss details of his plans the words came in a rush. "We still have the ships we used when we went to Yolkus. I moved them into a parking orbit just inside the asteroid belt and it would only take a day or so to outfit them with offensive weaponry and defensive systems."

The thought of piloting space fighters roused the interest of the boys but the girls weren't convinced. "You mean like Ultra Lord's turbo blasters and vibro-shields?" asked Libby as the other girls snickered.

Jimmy thought about it. "Well, not really. More like nucleon particle disruptors and phased graviton deflectors."

"Whatever. But you admit that whoever is threatening the First Alliance isn't threatening us. I mean, you practically said that you didn't even know if there _is_ a threat."

"Well, technically, no. But I'm sure…well, pretty sure… that -"

Nick was shaking his head. "It seems to me that the only time we have a problem with these aliens is when we mess with them. It seems to me that if we mind our own business that things would be cool around here."

There was a buzz of agreement around the room and Cindy nodded wordlessly. _Told you_, she thought tiredly. "Look, Neutron," she said sympathetically, "I'm sure you feel like they need help. But there are people, or bugs, or whatever aliens are out there, that are better equipped to help this. I say we just sent an e-mail or something to whoever out there handles these things and let them handle it."

"I agree," added Britney.

"Word," nodded Libby.

A murmur of assent ran around the room and the kids began to disperse, with a few congregating at the soda fountain and others filing out the door. Jimmy tried in vain to persuade some who passed by him but soon gave up and dropped into a booth, thinking solitary thoughts. It was only when someone slid into the booth across from him that he looked up.

"I'm sorry," Cindy said. "Really, I am. But I told you. We're school kids, not astronauts. If the military can't help out what do you think we could do?"

"I don't know." Jimmy answered without expression. He shrugged. "Something. Anything."

"Well, at least it's over. You tried and now you can put it behind you."

Jimmy looked up. "Huh?"

"You know. You tried, but now it's time to move on."

Jimmy shook his head. "No, it's not. Maybe they won't help. Maybe you won't help. But I have to."

Cindy wavered between whether she should strangle Jimmy or pound her head on the table as she struggled to put her thoughts into words. "What is it with you?" she exploded.

"With _me_?" Jimmy objected in shock.

"Yes, with you!" Cindy clenched her fists, which were shaking with emotion. "Why is it that anytime there's some problem, even the one or two that actually aren't your fault, you have to rush off to the rescue? Did it ever occur to you that things would be just fine without you? That sometimes the Universe just doesn't need you?"

"No." Cindy was left speechless but what seemed the acme of arrogance on Jimmy's part. Before she could find her voice again Jimmy had resumed speaking quietly. "I've always felt that everyone matters. That there's some reason for them to be here, even if no one else understands why."

In a horrible flash of hindsight Cindy suddenly realized how her words must have sounded to him, but Jimmy kept talking.

"There was some reason Carl was on Felangie. There was some reason he got the princess' message. And there was some reason I'm involved in it all. And something inside won't let me ignore that." He stood suddenly and crossed over to the door. Before leaving, however, he turned and anounced, "We'll be leaving just after midnight. If anyone changes their mind about going, meet me by the clubhouse."

The buzz of conversation in the Candy Bar paused briefly as the patrons listened to Jimmy's announcement, and then resumed in mid-sentence as soon as the door closed behind him. Cindy noted that no one seemed inclined to take up Jimmy on his offer, just as she had tried to tell him. But even though she had been right, she didn't feel like she had won the argument.

She didn't feel she had won anything.

End of Chapter 4


	5. PreFlight

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 5:

Jimmy pounded the strut of the Strato XL with uncharacteristic savagery. The rocket ship had originally been a sturdy one and its strength had been greatly augmented since through a number of design enhancements. Even so, Jimmy's violent blows threatened to exceed several of the ship's structural limits and the vehicle shuddered under the pounding. Carl watched the display for some time before speaking to Sheen, who was lounging nearby.

"He's been hammering for quite a while," he commented, raising his voice to be heard over the din.  
"So?" asked Sheen. "He's hammered a lot on things before."

"Yeah, but he's always used a hammer before. This time he's using that laser weldy thing of his."

Sheen roused himself to observe Jimmy's actions. "Oh, yeah. How about that?"

Carl looked worried. "Do you think anything's wrong?"

"There's only one way to find out." Cupping his hands together Sheen yelled, "Hey, Jimmy! Anything wrong?"

"Nope," Jimmy replied tersely without stopping.

Sheen settled back again. "See? He's fine."

After their failed attempt to rally support at the Candy Bar Jimmy, Carl, and Sheen had rejoined Exjay Nine and Bubo in Jimmy's lab. That had been several hours ago and Jimmy had spent the entire time modifying the Strato XL for the journey ahead, while Exjay Nine and Bubo had laboriously programmed the ship's navigation computer with the necessary astrogation charts of the Hyades Cluster. Jimmy had a good grasp of what the sector contained, in much the same way an average American student might know the geography of Europe, but the details needed for starflight were beyond him. Fortunately Exjay Nine had a good working knowledge of the cluster and, with Bubo's help, was able to transfer the more critical astrogration charts from the orbiting cruiser into Jimmy's computer. Sheen and Carl had initially tried to assist the robots until Exjay Nine had politely suggested that they might be of more assistance to Jimmy. They then tried to help Jimmy, but after clearly demonstrating that they had no aptitude for any task Jimmy had told them both in no uncertain terms to sit down and touch nothing.

"Finished, Jimmy," Exjay Nine announced, straightening up from the small electronic box. "I regret that I was unable to store the entire set of charts in your computer, but the memory capacity was insufficient to hold them all. Still, I admit that I am quite impressed with the storage capacity this unit does have."

Bubo, who had no nose, managed to nevertheless convey the impression of sniffing disdainfully. "I don't see why I couldn't have stored the charts. My storage capacity is quite adequate for the task."

"I am sure of that," Exjay Nine assured the smaller robot. "But it would not have been practical to interface your systems with that of Jimmy's spacecraft."

The orb surveyed the Strato XL with undisguised skepticism. "That's a spacecraft?"

Jimmy paused briefly in his hammering. "If you don't have anything better to do than diss my ship," Jimmy called irritably, "maybe you could bring that phase generator over here."

"As you say, sir," Exjay Nine replied. The inhumanly strong automaton hefted the bulky and rather heavy piece of equipment and carried it to where Jimmy was working. As Exjay Nine held the generator in place Jimmy fired up the laser welder and secured it with several spot welds. "Do you believe that those welds will be sufficient, sir?" the robot asked as Jimmy snapped off the torch and stepped back.

"No," Jimmy answered. "But for now they'll hold until I finish securing it with the plasma torch. And call me 'Jimmy', not 'sir'."

"My apologies," Exjay Nine replied. "You appeared angry, and I thought that my familiarity had somehow displeased you."

"I know." Jimmy sighed and his shoulders drooped. "It's not you. I guess I'm just disappointed with…" He hesitated before going on. "…with the kids at the Candy Bar. I really thought they'd help out."

"I don't see why you're surprised," piped up Bubo. "Organics are usually random and unpredictable things, but their primary instinct, that of self-preservation, is clearly comprehensible. To place oneself at risk for another is illogical."

"So you're saying that running away from danger is a good thing and doesn't mean you're a coward?" asked Sheen.

"No, it means you're a coward," replied Bubo. "I'm just saying that it's logical."

Sheen looked perplexed. "So risking our lives to help you out makes no sense?"

"None whatsoever," the orb replied.

"Well, then," Sheen mused as he scratched his head, "could you tell us again why we're bothering to help you?"

Bubo had no answer to this, as the sphere had no shoulders to shrug.

During this exchange Jimmy had completed securing the generator to the Strato. "What now, Jimmy?" asked Exjay Nine.

"Now we just need to wait for the Hyades Cluster to reach its maximum altitude, which should be in about seven hours and nine minutes," Jimmy answered. "Until then we can each make whatever final preparations we need to before we lift off. Just be sure to be back here at 1:00 AM."

"Okay, Jimmy. See you then," said Carl as he exited the lab.

"No problem, Jimmy," added Sheen, following his friend out the door. The two took the exit tube to the clubhouse in Jimmy's back yard and went their separate ways: Carl to his house next door, and Sheen to his own house further down the street. To Sheen's surprise Libby was sitting on the front steps.

"Hi, Sheen," she said.

"Libby!" he greeted her. "Or should I say, 'Love Puppet'?" he added in a low, suggestive voice.

Libby frowned. "Don't call me that, Sheen. I'm serious."

Sheen simply waggled his eyebrows up and down at her. "And what makes you think I'm not?" he grinned.

Libby simply shook her head and sighed. "Maybe this was a bad idea," she said as she got to her feet and marched towards the front gate. "Have a nice trip, Sheen."

"No, wait," Sheen pleaded. "Don't go." Libby halted and Sheen went on. "Why did you come by? You never come by my house."

Libby turned to face him. "I came by here to ask you to not go with Jimmy," she said.

"You mean you want Jimmy and Carl to go alone?" Sheen blinked at this. "But why?"

"I don't want them to go, either," Libby answered. "But as long as you're willing to go they aren't going to stay."

"But we have to go," Sheen protested. "You heard what Jimmy said. Lee's in trouble. Carl has to help her and we have to help him. We have to go."

"No, you don't!" Libby's voice was uncharacteristically strident. "Didn't you hear what Cindy said? This really doesn't concern us. The princess is our friend and all, but this has nothing to do with friendship. It's something that her planet has to work out with some other planets, is all. It's none of our business!"

Sheen nodded thoughtfully. "I think I see. Like what happens in a family is no one else's business but theirs?"

"Exactly."

"So, if I was having problems with my family, you wouldn't help me?" he asked sadly.

"No. Yes! I don't…" Libby's voice faded as she tried to think of some way to respond. "It's not that simple, Sheen."

"You mean I'm too stupid to understand it." He looked down and kicked the ground as he spoke. "You're probably right. I'm not as smart as you or Cindy or Jimmy. A lot of times the only way I can figure out what to do when bad things like this happen to someone is to think what I'd like someone else to do if something bad happened to me. I know that if I was in a lot of trouble I'd like my friends to help me. I guess that's why Carl feels he has to help the princess. I don't know about that for sure. But I do know that I'd like Carl to help me if a friend of mines was in trouble."

Libby clenched her fists. _How can someone who can't better than a C- in grammar suddenly get so smart in debating?_ she thought. There was only one last card to play, and she played it. "Sheen, I don't want you to go."

That startled Sheen. "What?"

"I want you to stay here," she answered. "With me. I don't want you to go." While Sheen tried to absorb the meaning of all this, Libby rushed on. "It's dangerous out there, Sheen. You could get hurt. You might even get killed. I don't want that to happen to you."

Even now Sheen didn't dare believe what he hoped. "What are you saying, Libby?"

"I'm saying that we've been friends a long time," she said. "We've been through a lot together and that's made us pretty tight. And I think that lately we've been getting even closer. We may even get serious about it someday, maybe soon. And I don't want to throw that all way Sheen." It was an unfair question for Libby to ask, but for Sheen's sake she asked it. "Is that what you want?"

"But…Jimmy…and Carl…" Sheen stumbled.

"They'll be fine," she assured him. "If you don't go, Jimmy won't go. And if Jimmy doesn't go, Carl won't go." She reached out and took his hand. "Please stay."

Sheen was in mental torment. Despite Libby's assurances Sheen was not convinced by her arguments that Jimmy and Carl would willingly stay simply because he refused to go. Carl in any case had no reason to stay. He had been willing to go even before Sheen and Jimmy had offered to accompany him. "Why don't you come with me?" he asked. "We'd be together then."

Libby shook her head and dropped his hand. "Sheen," she said in exasperation, "you just don't understand. I don't want someone who wants to play Ultra Lord and go jetting around the galaxy trying to save the universe. I want someone who'll be here for me. And I need someone who understands that."

The next four words were the hardest Sheen had ever had to say. "I have to go."

"Then you're going without me," was all Libby said as she turned and walked away, leaving Sheen staring helplessly behind. "I'm staying here. You decide for yourself what's important to you."

Back at the clubhouse Jimmy was having an unexpected meeting of his own with Cindy. While Exjay Nine and Bubo were running a pre-flight check of their own craft Jimmy decided to get something to eat and perhaps pack some snacks for the long interstellar flight. He was so lost in his own thoughts that he almost didn't see the obstruction in his path and pulled up only just in time to avoid a collision. It was Cindy, standing with her arms folded and with a severe expression on her face.

"Well?" she demanded.

"'Well' what?" he replied.

"Are you still planning on going off on this ridiculous crusade of yours?"

Jimmy gritted his teeth, seething. "First of all, it's Carl's crusade, not mine. Sheen and I are just helping him. And second, I figure that's something a real friend would do."

That jab made Cindy wince but she stood her ground. "And just what kind of chance do you think that the three of you have?"

"Unfortunately, not as good as if anyone else in this place offered to help." He stopped and looked doubtful. "You didn't come by to offer to help, did you?"

"Me? Are you insane?" Cindy gave him a look that was part incredulity and part derision. "Believe it or not, there are some people on this earth – about six billion of them – who realize that the well-being of the entire galaxy isn't their responsibility."

"All right," Jimmy challenged her. "Whose responsibility is it?"

"It's…the people who have to…when things like this happen…" After several more false starts she gave up. "I don't know!" she exploded. "All I know is that it isn't mine, or yours, or Sheen's. And it's definitely not Carl's. He can barely take care of Mr. Wuggles, must less Princess Leama's business."

"That's why I'm going along," countered Jimmy. "I'm going along to keep him and Sheen safe."

"No, what you'll be doing is helping them get themselves hurt or worse! Don't you get it? If you didn't go, they wouldn't go either. None of this would be a problem if you just stayed out of it all." Cindy began pacing back and forth, waving her arms. "People don't need you going around and getting mixed up in their lives and confusing things so they don't know what's what anymore! You show up and do all these amazing things for people like they're important to you, and then you're off again like they don't mean anything and never really did!"

Jimmy was totally confused by this. "Who are you talking about?" was all he could say.

"You! Carl! Sheen! I don't know!" Cindy stopped her frantic and stood there, looking upset and confused. "All I know is that you're going off somewhere and probably won't be back because you'll get vaporized in some stupid space battle or meet some girl from another star system and decide to live on her planet for the rest of your life. Well, fine! Go ahead! See if I care!" Cindy stalked off, leaving Jimmy gaping, speechless, and puzzled behind her. "And if by some miracle you do survive, don't bother coming back. Who needs you, anyway? Not me, that's who!"

At three minutes past one the next morning a large silver sphere rose into the clear night sky from the Neutron family's back yard, followed shortly afterwards by a brightly colored rocket. For a long moment the rocket rose straight up, its exhaust leaving a bright trail behind it like a needle trailing a sparkling silver thread. Then the craft adjusted its heading and sped towards a cluster of stars shining in the southern sky to quickly lose itself among the hundreds of points of light.

_I'm on my way, Princess_, thought Carl.

_She didn't come_, thought Sheen sadly, watching the Earth shrink behind them.

_He didn't stay_, thought Libby, who had seen the rocket climb away from a window in the house across the street.

_He's really gone_, thought Cindy, who had been keeping a silent vigil next to Libby.

_Good-bye, Cindy_, thought Jimmy.

End of Chapter 5


	6. Tee for Three

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 6:

"Are we there yet?"

Jimmy grimaced at the question. "For the hundredth time, Sheen, no!" he snapped. "We've got another four or five hours yet before we reach the main star group."

"What are we going to do when we get there?" asked Carl.

"That's a good question. Exjay Nine said we had to get Princess Leama's message to the Alliance.

According to the star charts in the astrogation computer, the closest planet would be Gorlock."

"Right," said Sheen.

Jimmy didn't quite understand the tone of Sheen's answer. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Oh, nothing. It's just rather convenient that -" Sheen uttered a series of guttural grunts and squeals. "- will be the first person we'll be seeing."

"Her name is April. And that has nothing to do with it," Jimmy growled. "I'm not the one who organized the star systems in this sector. I don't see why you're getting on my case about it."

Sheen shrugged. "I just thought I'd fill in for Cindy since she's not here."

"Well, don't!" Jimmy snarled. "She didn't want to be here, so there's no reason for anyone here to compensate for her. 'Good riddance' is what I say." _She didn't even say good-bye_, he thought unhappily.

"What do we do when we get to Gorlock, Jimmy?" asked Carl.

Jimmy shrugged. "I guess that depends upon what the message says and if we even manage to get through to Gorlock. But my guess is that they're going to need our help."

Sheen counted the persons in the modified Strato XL. The total still came to three. "I kind of think we really need more people, then," he commented.

Jimmy angrily slammed his fist against the dashboard. "What did you think I was trying to do when I called the government and practically begged the kids at the Candy Bar to come along? What else could I have done?" he demanded.

"Yeah, Sheen," Carl reproached him. "Do you think he could just go somewhere and rent some?"

Jimmy stiffened at that. "Carl!" he shouted.

Carl cowered in his seat. "What?"

Jimmy turned around to look back in admiration at Carl. "You're a genius!"

"Oh, that," Jimmy's friend replied, sitting upright again. "I know."

Sheen, who had been listening to this, spoke up in confusion. "Wait a minute. You're saying we're going to rent some people? Didn't President Johnson write the Civil War to say that was illegal?"

"You're thinking about the Civil Rights Act…sort of," Jimmy answered. "No. I'm talking about finding some mercenaries."

Sheen sounded even more confused. "We're going to look for some zoos to hire people? Or are we going to hire animals to help us?"

"Could we hire some llamas? Or maybe a capybara?" wheedled Carl.

"No, no, you're thinking about menageries. I'm talking about mercenaries. You know, professional soldiers who hire themselves out. We could hire some people to help us. Why didn't I think of that before?"

"Oh! I know that one!" Sheen called out excitedly while waving his hand. "Maybe because we don't have any money?"

Jimmy sank back into his seat again, his brow furrowing. "There is that. What kind of mercenaries could we get without any money?"

"Cheap ones?" offered Carl.

"Possibly. But where could we find cheap mercenaries?"

A coughing noise came from the speaker grill in the cockpit of the Strato XL. "Excuse me, Jimmy," the three boys heard Exjay Nine say, "but I may have a possible solution."

"Go ahead," said Jimmy.

"Well, although I haven't been there myself," the robot continued, "there is one place you might try. It's a well-known cesspool of the very dregs of society, but I understand that there are some very capable individuals who could be quite useful…for a price."

Jimmy punched up the readout on the navigation computer. "What's the name of this place?"

"Mos Slimey Spaceport, approximately 60 light-years away." At this a shrill squeal erupted from the Strato's speaker and all three occupants covered their ears.

"What was that?" Sheen asked when the ear-splitting noise ceased.

"Regenerative audio feedback, I think," ventured Jimmy.

"No sir, it was Bubo," Exjay Nine said.

"You bet it was me!" the small robot answered over the communications link, its synthesized voice still shrill. "You can't be serious about going to that place! It's filthy! It's barbaric! Why, it's almost as bad as Earth!"

Sheen tried to crawl into the front of the rocket, his hands clawing for the speaker. "Okay, that's it! Let me at 'im!"

Jimmy shoved Sheen back into the rear seat and studied the display of the navigation computer. "I don't see it listed," he said.

"I'm sorry, Jimmy," Exjay Nine apologized. "As I said, I couldn't load all the charts into your compact unit and I didn't think this was one of the destinations we'd need. Fortunately our navigation computer has it coordinates listed."

"Maybe we should have let Bubo be our navigation computer after all," said Carl.

Bubo's scornful voice came over the speaker. "I wouldn't have taken you even if I had the charts to get there."

Sheen again tried to climb into the front of the rocket and was once again repulsed by Jimmy. "Okay, Exjay Nine, lead the way. Let's see who or what we can find at this Mos Slimey Spaceport."

"But Jimmy, how are we going to pay anyone to help us?" asked Carl.

"Leave that to me," Jimmy answered confidently. "I have a plan."

Several hours later both ships had landed at the spaceport. A short walk into the settlement's crowded streets quickly confirmed Exjay Nine's and even Bubo's opinion of the place. It was hot and dry, filled to overflowing with seedy denizens of uncountable alien worlds, and choked with gambling dens, drinking halls, and establishments of an even more dubious nature. Carl, Sheen, and Jimmy looked around in wonder.

"Man!" Sheen finally said. "Are we in Las Vegas?"

"Mos Slimey Spaceport," Exjay Nine solemnly intoned. "You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy."

A voice to their right speaking in English cut through the ever-present buzz of a dozen alien tongues. "Hey! Fools! Just what do you think you're doing here?"

The small group turned to identify the speaker and the jaws of the humans dropped. "Tee!" Sheen cried joyfully.

"That's right," Tee answered as he strode up to them. He swept up the three boys in a bear hug, crushing the breath out of them. "Man, it's good to see you fools. But what are you doing here?"

It wasn't until Tee released them that any of them could answer. "We could ask you the same question," gasped Jimmy. "We were told this wasn't a very nice place."

"Yeah," Carl wheezed. "Are you scum or a villain?"

Tee shook his head. "I'm here with Zix and Travoltron looking for work," he replied. "Since we stopped being evil it's been hard finding someone to hire us. We figured maybe something would turn up here."

"Funny you should say that," Jimmy told him. "We might have a proposition for you guys. Where are Zix and Travoltron?"

"Follow me." With Tee clearing a way through the milling crowds the group made their way to a slightly less decrepit building and inside towards one of the many rickety tables. At Tee's approach the two figures seated at it looked up and Jimmy, Carl, and Sheen recognized them as Tee's colleagues Zix and Travoltron. Travoltron seemed surprised to see the newcomers, but Zix, who never seemed surprised by anything, simply leaned back in his chair.

"Well, well," he commented Zix. "Will you look what the kremlak dragged in? You boys and your machines old enough to be in here?"

"Hush your mouth, fool," growled Tee. "Jimmy says he and his friends might have something for us to do."

"Really?" Zix leaned forward again, planting his elbows on the table and rubbing his hands together. "Then I hoped you warned him that we don't come cheap."

"I thought you said we don't come free," pointed out Travoltron. "You told us that cheap was negotiable, and that if things got bad enough -"

Zix rolled his eyes and Travoltron subsided. "And I thought we all agreed that I do all the talking and everyone else keeps their yaps shut." When he was sure that he wouldn't be interrupted again Zix resumed speaking. "So negotiate already. What's the job?"

Jimmy, Carl, and Sheen found chairs and crowded around the small table while Exjay Nine stood behind Jimmy and Bubo hovered nearby. Jimmy looked around cautiously. "Isn't this kind of an open place to discuss this kind of thing?"

Zix gave Jimmy an easy smile. "Relax. Earth is a very popular destination. Not many people on this rock speak Terran, and this isn't like a civilized world with universal translation matrices. I doubt that anyone will understand us. And even if someone did…well, 'honor among thieves'. You catch my drift?"

Carl obviously didn't. "So are you scum, a villain, or a thief?"

"I'm a legitimate businessman trying to stay on the straight and narrow and not starve in the process. So shoot."

Jimmy quickly and quietly summarized the situation. "And so," he concluded, "we need to get some help, and fast."

"So far I follow you. But you said you don't have a lead cubit to your name. How do you plan to finance your little operation?"

Jimmy tone became even more conspiratorial. "Well, that's where you guys come in. Like I said, I don't have any money. But I know someone who's loaded. All we need to do is have you take us to them and help us bring them back here, and we'll be set."

"I see." Zix nodded. "But the three of us would have to work on credit until then. Am I right?"

"Well…" Jimmy looked embarrassed. "Yes. But you can trust us."

"Yeah, you can trust him," Tee agreed. "He's our friend, fool."

"Oh, I do trust him," said Zix. "But it will up the price a bit." He did some mental figuring and rubbed his thumb and forefinger together. "Ten thousand quatloos."

Sheen was outraged. "Ten thousand quatloos?" he cried. "We don't have ten thousand quatloos! I don't even know what a quatloo is!"

"I think it's kind of like an orange and you make marmalade from it," suggested Carl, trying to be helpful. "I'm allergic to them."

"That's a cumquat, Carl," said Jimmy. "And don't worry about it, Zix. You'll get paid."

"We'd better," Zix warned him, leaning forward. "We're not evil but that doesn't mean we're stupid or like to be cheated." He settled back again. "So who's your rich friend?"

"Princess Leama of Felangie."

Although the buzz of conversation in the room around them continued unabated it seemed to Jimmy that a sudden silence fell on the room. Zix eyed him narrowly. "Wait a minute. I thought you said that the princess had been captured."

"Well, she was," Jimmy replied, "but I figure we could rescue her. Once she's free, she can use the Royal Treasury of Felangie to pay you, or sell her jewels, or something."

Zix stared at Jimmy for several long minutes before finally speaking. "You know, Jimmy, I had you all wrong."

Startled but somewhat flattered at this, Jimmy asked "You did?"

Zix nodded emphatically. "Yes. When I first met you I said to myself, 'Zix, old pal, there's a smart kid without a humorous bone in his body.' Now I find out that not only do you have a fantastic sense of humor, but you're a total moron as well."

"What?" Now Jimmy was incensed.

"You heard me. I'm not on the main grapevine anymore, but I still hear things. Some of the things I hear are about this network you're thinking of going up against. Not very big, but very nasty and with some pretty big backers with some pretty big plans, to boot."

"Exactly," Jimmy said. "That's why we have to stop it."

Zix leaned backwards again. "Kid, let me tell you a story my mother told me when I wasn't much bigger than you, about the three little grontars."

"Is it the one about the porridge being too hot and too cold and just right?" asked Carl. "Or the one where their house gets blown down?"

"Uh…different grontars. Anyway," Zix went on, "there were three little grontars living happily in their burrow. Then one day, a baby kremlak shows up and asks them to please let it in. Now, kremlaks aren't things to be messed with, but rather than leave it alone the grontars think that because it's so small and polite it can't be dangerous. So they let it in. Dinner time comes and the kremlak asks if it could please have something to eat. Once again the grontars give in and feed it rather than leaving it alone. The days go by and the grontars don't notice just how big this kremlak is getting. But the kremlak does. One day, it stops asking the grontars for things quite so politely. Not long after that, it doesn't even bother to ask anymore. And then, one day…" Zix paused to let the point sink in. "One day, there aren't even three little grontars in the burrow anymore." After another pause he asked, "Get the point?"

"Uh…kremlaks aren't very nice?" Carl offered.

"Grontars are stupid?" suggested Sheen. "Or maybe tasty?"

Zix's head dropped onto the table. "I hope that at least your pal Jimmy got the point," he sighed.

"I got the point," said Jimmy. "But it's the same as mine. We have to do something about this threat now before it's too late!"

Zix shook his head. "Sorry, kid, but the point of the story that I like is this. If you don't mess with kremlaks at all it's quite possible that you won't have to worry about them messing with you, either. No deal."

"But -" Jimmy tried.

"End of discussion. But would you like to try some zurpaplik grub poppers before you go? They're a house specialty and actually quite tasty. I'm fairly sure they're non-toxic to humans."

"No, thanks." Jimmy pushed his chair back and started for the exit. "Come on, guys. Let's go." Carl, Sheen, and the robots fell in line behind him and they jostled their way through the room to the exit. Tee watched them go and then glared at Zix.

"What?" Zix asked in answer to Tee's hostile stare. "I offered him some poppers, didn't I?"

"Yeah," Travoltron spoke up. "Our treat, even."

"Whoa, whoa, whoa," Zix protested. "I never said anything about that."

"Zip it!" Tee bellowed. "I can't believe you two," he went on when Zix and Travoltron had quieted down. "We're supposed to be Jimmy's friends. But you just turned your back on him when he needed you. Needed you bad!"

"Hey, friends like that we definitely do not need," Zix retorted. "It's not very healthy."

"We always need friends," countered Tee. "And if that's how you two fools treat a friend like Jimmy, then maybe you aren't the type of friends that I need."

"And what is that supposed to mean?"

"You heard me. This is good-bye. I'm out of here. You two go find yourself some other chump to hang around with." Tee turned on his heel and barreled his way towards the door. "Hey, Jimmy! Sheen! Carl! Wait up for me, fools!"

Zix and Travoltron watched as Tee disappeared through the door into the thronged street beyond. Finally Zix looked away, only to find Travoltron staring at him. "What?" he demanded. He signaled one of the beverages servers to bring him a flask and a glass. "I know what I'm doing."

End of Chapter 6


	7. Unexpected Company

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 7:

"Cheer up, Jimmy," Sheen consoled his friend as they threaded their way through the crowded street. "In a wretched hive of spam and millinery like this I'm sure we can find someone to help us."

"That's 'scum' and 'villainy'," corrected Exjay Nine.

Sheen refused to be discouraged. "Well, whatever it is, I'm sure there's somebody willing to help. I mean, what are scum and villains for if they won't help someone in trouble?"

"Well, if we do look for someone, should we concentrate on the scum? Or should we maybe try to find a few villains to like, you know, make it fair for everyone?" asked Carl. Personal experience had made him particularly sensitive to being left out of things.

"Guys," Jimmy said mournfully, "we're not going to find anyone here. If people we know aren't going to help, then what chance do we have of finding anyone else? I guess we may as well…"

"'May as well' what?" asked Sheen when Jimmy didn't finish.

Jimmy didn't answer. Instead he stopped and peered curiously at the large window on the front one of the less reputable establishments common to the spaceport. As Jimmy continued to stare, Carl fidgeted nervously. "I really don't think we should be looking at those kind of things, Jimmy," he said.

"I thought I saw that before," Sheen heard Jimmy mutter.

"Really?" Sheen pressed his face against the window. "What windows have you been looking through lately?"

Jimmy responded with an annoyed noise. "Not through the window. In the window. Check out the reflection."

Sheen, Carl, and Exjay Nine concentrated on the changing images on the surface of the glass. At first they saw nothing unusual. As they continued to watch, however, they noticed an unmoving figure on the other side of the street through gaps in the reflection of the passing crowd. The figure was dressed in loose robes with a hood pulled low over its face, shrouding its features in shadow. Jimmy had thought he had seen the mysterious figure before. When they all had first entered the saloon down the street with Tee, it had seemed odd to him for someone to be wearing such clothing in the hot climate of Mos Slimey Spaceport and he thought he had seem the stranger again when they came back out. Now he was sure.

"Guys," he whispered, "whoever that is across the street is following us."

"Why?" Sheen whispered back without turning away from the window. "We haven't done anything."

"He may be a robber," suggested Exjay Nine in a muted tone.

Carl shivered at that. "Maybe we should find the police."

"There are no police to speak of at Mos Slimey," Exjay Nine answered. "The only security forces here are private services hired by the wealthy."

"What should we do then?" asked Sheen.

Jimmy thought it over. "Let's continue like nothing is wrong," he decided. "At the first chance we'll duck into a side street and confront whoever it is when they come by."

"No rush," answered Sheen, still peering through the window. Disgusted, Jimmy and Carl each grabbed one of Sheen's arms and dragged him away. "Oh, man," he complained. "Just when it was starting to get good. I think one of the girls inside was beginning to notice me."

"Being noticed is not necessarily a good thing, Sheen," Jimmy cautioned. "Maybe it's just coincidence that guy is following us and it has nothing to do with the princess, but maybe not. Until we know for sure, we shouldn't take any chances." He readied himself. "Okay, this alley coming up on the right looks good. Duck into it as soon as we reach it."

The small group approached the opening and swiftly dove into it, flattening themselves against one of the walls as soon as they were inside. They waited expectantly for the mysterious figure to pass by or follow them in, but when nothing happened Jimmy began to fidget. "I don't understand," he said. He peeked cautiously around the corner to survey the way they had come and then pulled his head back, looking puzzled. "He's not there."

"Maybe he can turn invisible," whimpered Carl. "He's an alien. Aliens can do all sorts of weird things."

"Although some species in this sector have mimetic abilities," Exjay Nine reported, "I am not aware of any that can vanish in such a way."

Sheen offered another suggestion. "Maybe it can fly."

Jimmy shook his head doubtfully. "If he could have he would have trailed us from above rather than on the ground. I think he noticed us watching him. He may have given up. Or he may still be following but is being more cautious. In either case, he's good, whoever he is."

"Well, maybe if we go back to that place where we first noticed him we'd spot him again," Sheen offered hopefully.

"No," was Jimmy's emphatic response. "I think we should just get back to the ships and head to Gorlock. We'll just have to make the best of it without any help."

"Very good, Jimmy. Although it is not your personal concern, I shall be relieved when the princess' message is finally delivered. I have been most…" The robot stiffened and the head slowly swiveled back and forth. "Someone is calling."

"Someone calling? Are you sure? Who?" asked Jimmy.

"I do not know. But my audio sensors are most acute. Someone is calling your name."

This astonished Jimmy. "_My_ name?" He shook off the idea. "You must be mistaken. It must just sound like my name."

"No, sir." There was a pause. "It is definitely your name, and those of Sir Wheezer and Master Sheen as well. The source appears to be drawing closer." After another pause the robot slowly announced, "I do not understand the context of the message accompanying the names, however."

"Can you tell us what they're saying?" Carl asked.

"Yes, sir. I will relay the words." The robot straightened and solemnly intoned, "Sheen. Jimmy. Carl. Come on out, wherever you are." The was a low rumble from the robots speaker as if imitating someone growling. "I pity the fool who tries ditching me."

Jimmy, Sheen, and Carl slumped against the wall of the alley in relief. "Tee," said Sheen happily. "I knew he wouldn't desert us."

"We don't know anything of the kind," countered Jimmy. "He's been friends with Zix and Travotron a lot longer than he's been friends with us."

"Ah," said the robot. "I should have recognized the voice pattern, but I did not save it as I did not expect to meet any of those…" Exjay Nine paused to find a suitable word. "…gentlemen again."

"Do you hear anyone else?" Carl wanted to know.

"No, sir," Exjay Nine replied. "Only the one speaker."

"Let's go see what he has to say," said Jimmy. The three boys and robot stepped from the alleyway to see Tee standing some ways down the street, searching the streets and periodically cupping his hands to call out their names.

"Over here!" Sheen yelled, waving.

Tee heard the shout and hurried up. "There you are," he said. "I wondered where you'd gone. I almost thought something had happened to you. This isn't a good place for strangers. You could get hurt around here if you aren't careful. Hurt bad."

"We appreciate your concern," Jimmy answered in a cold voice. "Is that all?"

"All?" Tee seemed surprised at that. "No. I came to join you. Maybe those two chumps won't, but I will. Friends stick together. That's what friends are for." He held out his arms and reached for the three boys, causing Jimmy, Sheen, and Carl to take an involuntary step backward.

"No hugs!" the three exclaimed together.

"Well, no matter," Tee went on. "Let's get your robots and -" He stopped in mid-sentence and looked around. "Where's the other one?"

"Other one?" Surprised, Jimmy looked around, as did Carl, Sheen, and Exjay Nine. It suddenly occurred to all of them that they had not seen Bubo since parting with Zix, Tee, and Travoltron. "I don't know. Did he leave the saloon with us?"

"I don't know," confessed Exjay Nine, sounding distraught. "I should have been paying more attention."

Tee looked grim. "That's bad. Real bad. There are scavengers all over this rock looking for little 'bots like that. The spare part shops and scrap yards are full of what's left of them."

"We have to find him," Exjay Nine implored Jimmy. "If anything happens to him…"

"No time," said Tee. "I thought you were in a hurry."

"Not that much of a hurry," Jimmy countered, setting off down the street in the direction they had come. "No one gets left behind."

"But he's just a mechanical," protested Tee, following behind with Carl, Sheen, and Exjay Nine. "No one risks themselves for a mechanical."

Jimmy stopped short and whirled around to confront Tee. "There's no just _anything_ in this group," he snapped angrily. "He's Exjay Nine's friend…and Exjay Nine is mine."

"And mine," spoke up Carl.

"Yeah, mine too," added Sheen.

"And like you said, friends stick together," Jimmy continued. "It doesn't matter if they're metal constructs or carbon-based life forms. They're people." His voice slowed and dropped in volume, like a dying phonograph. "They matter. Everyone matters."

Although he did not actually have a heart, Exjay Nine's response was heartfelt nonetheless. "Thank you, Jimmy."

Tee stared first at Jimmy and then at Exjay Nine, as if trying to understand what the boy was saying. He did not have long to consider for at that moment the missing Bubo reappeared, whizzing over his head and hovering over the group. "We have to get out of here!" the sphere piped, sounding almost hysterical.

"Run? Why?" asked Carl.

In answer to the innocent question a beam of light slice the air to pulverize a section of wall scarcely three feet away from Carl, leaving a fading purple ionization trail and smell of ozone behind. The beam did not touch Carl, but the energy nimbus of the ray left one whole side of his body numb. Bubo whirled in agitated circles above the astonished group. The street in the direction of the attack cleared as if by magic, leaving a clear path as pedestrians dove for cover on either side, but Jimmy and the others could see nothing.

"Bounty hunter!" Bubo shrilled.

"That was enough explanation for Tee. In one motion he scooped up Jimmy, Sheen, and Carl and carried them bodily into the alley they had only recently vacated. Another blast demolished a corner of the alleyway just as the two robots followed Tee and the others into it. Without a backward glance the robots and organics hurried through the twisting and narrow passageway, anxious to put as much distance between them and their unknown assailant as possible and, if possible, escape altogether. The occasional sound of stone and brick being blown into fragments by a probing ray blast behind them assured them that they had not eluded their pursuer and helped to drive them on. Then, quite suddenly, they stopped.

They had reached a dead end.

Desperately the hunted party searched for some exit or place of concealment, but in vain. "What now?" Carl wailed.

Tee pointed in the direction from which they'd come. "Maybe there's a side passage back that way?"

"I didn't see any." Sheen surveyed the walls around them. "Maybe we could form a human pyramid and get out."

"Don't think so. The walls are too high. And how would the people on the bottom get out?" Jimmy looked angry. "If only we had a weapon."

"What a time to forget my Utra Lord Deluxe Utility Belt!" Sheen chastised himself. "And I just reloaded the tomatoes, too!"

"Guys?" said Jimmy, his voice strained.

At that everyone turned, certain of what they'd find. Facing them, not a dozen feet away, stood a form that, even without the massive energy weapon leveled on them, seemed to epitomize evil. It was bipedal in construction, and might have been a robot or a living being wholly clad in armor. The scarred and battered surfaces bore silent witness of many battles and mutely proclaimed the prowess of the menacing figure. The gun swung slowly back and forth, as if their pursuer was deciding on a target.

"Sorry, guys," said Tee told the others as their adversary's weapon swung up. "I didn't think anyone would still be after us."

"After _you_?" squeaked Bubo.

"Zix, Travoltron, and I. I guess you can't be bad guys as long as we were and not get a price on your head sooner or later." He stepped forward. "All right, fool! You want to end it, then go ahead. Do you worst, chump!" He shook his fist in defiance. "But you'd better take your best shot, because one is all you're going to get!" He growled threateningly.

The firearm steadied, but to Tee's and the other's astonishment the weapon was aimed, not at him, but at Jimmy. Jimmy tensed, waiting for the deadly blast, when a large object seemed to fall from the sky and land directly on the menacing being, knocking him to the ground. What happened next happened so fast that no one, except possibly the robots, clearly saw what happened. As the stunned bounty hunter rose unsteadily to his feet the object bounced lightly up, knocked the weapon from his hands, and with two swift blows drove the hapless victim into unconsciousness. Only when their pursuer had slumped to the ground at the feet of the newcomer did the Jimmy, Carl, Sheen, and Tee stir. The familiar robed form turned to face them, and they could feel keen eyes watching them from within the shadowy recesses of the hood pulled low over the hidden face.

"I have been searching for you," their unknown rescuer said.

Jimmy looked uncertain. "For me?"

"All of you."

"Who…who are you?" Carl asked fearfully.

The figure pulled back the hood to reveal clearly Felangian features. "Captain Valtor," he announced, "High Captain of the Royal Guard of Felangie."

End of Chapter 7


	8. Shooting the Rapids

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 8:

Jimmy recovered from his astonishment and was the first to speak. "Captain Valtor! I remember you." His tone changed to one of confusion. "But when when we were on Felangie before -"

"Questions and answers latter," Valtor interrupted. "Do you have a vessel?"

Jimmy nodded. "Two, actually."

"Good. We must go. There will be others." The Felangian looked grim. "I know."

The group headed back up the alley, with Valtor leading the way. Although the royal guardsman proceeded with extreme caution, the others (with the possible exception of Bubo) were still hard-pressed to keep up with him. On the way back they passed another figure sprawled on the ground, another bounty hunter apparently caught unawares by Captain Valtor's stealth and a silent witness to his efficiency and prowess. The humans, especially Jimmy, felt much better having the officer with them. When they reached the busy street Captain Valtor turned to face Jimmy. "Which way to your ships?"

"Docking Bay 23," Jimmy replied, pointing.

"Let's go then," Valtor instructed. "Stay together, but stay alert. There isn't much law here. Bounty hunters won't have any compunction about firing into a crowd."

Carl cringed, remember the bolt that had just missed him. "Tell me about it."

The robots and organics merged into the spaceport's seemingly incessant foot traffic moving down the street. On Earth they would have made a most colorful and conspicuous collection, but here they were just another small but diverse group forming the motley assemblage that made up the population of Mos Slimey. The relatively small size of the humans further helped them to blend in. Jimmy, Sheen, and Carl were near the middle of the group, with Captain Valtor and Bubo taking the lead and Tee immediately behind them. Exjay Nine, the slowest member, brought up the rear. Valtor periodically glanced behind him to make sure that everyone was still together, and adjusted his pace to accommodate the speed of those following him. Ever-vigilant, he also kept a wary watch for others who appeared to be following them or who might be taking an inordinate amount of interest in them. It was with great relief that he reached the passage that led to Docking Bay 23 and rushed to the waiting vessels in the pit below.

The captain's relief was short-lived. He recognized the Felangian shuttle-pod immediately, but was surveying the Strato-XL with increasing disbelief when the others joined him. "What a piece of junk!" was all he could say.

"Hey, she'll make point five past light-speed!" Sheen defended the small craft. When Valtor gave him a challenging stare, he continued weakly, "Well, it has lights in it and it has some good points."

"We'll never get anywhere in this thing!" Valtor declared bitterly as Jimmy's temper slowly started to rise. "We might as well try walking off this rock."

"Hush your mouth, fool!" Tee told him. "If Jimmy says it'll fly, it'll fly." He turned to Jimmy. "Right, Jimmy?"

"You bet," Jimmy said hotly. "She may not look like much, but she's got it where it counts. She's got a lift to mass ratio that's way out of line and an armaments rating that's downright illegal. But right now we're in a hurry, so if everyone will get in…"

Valtor shook his head. "I'll take my chances in the shuttle-pod. It's not too fast but it will at least get us to where we want to go."

"Which is where?" asked Bubo.

"To rescue the princess," said Carl.

"Okay, then," said Jimmy. "Let's lift off and figure out where that is once we've cleared the system."

The party split into two groups. Valtor, as he had indicated, joined Exjay Nine and Bubo in the Felangian craft while Jimmy, Carl, Sheen, and Tee piled into the Strato XL. The large sphere slowly rose into the sky as Jimmy activated his rocket's systems. He had scarcely begun to do so when a squad of armed troops suddenly burst into the docking bay, weapons at the ready. "There they are! Blast them!" the squad leader called.

Radiant bolts leaped from the muzzles of the troopers' weapons, some of them directed towards the departing shuttle-pod but most of the shots intended for the grounded rocket. Jimmy slapped a large button on the console before him and a shimmer surrounded the rocket as the protective layers of the graviton deflectors enveloped the craft. Beams of destructive energy glanced harmlessly off the shields, blasting deep pits into the walls of the docking bay, as Jimmy completed his pre-flight preparations and the Strato's powerful drive systems powered the small vessel upward through the atmosphere. As the ship moved beyond the range of the troopers' weapons the squad leader thumbed the switch of a communications device. "They've lifted off," he rasped. "Move in to intercept."

"Roger that," a voice answered over the communicator's small speaker.

As the pale green sky of Mos Slimey around Jimmy's ship deepened into a star-flecked black Captain Valtor's voice came over the Strato XL's communicator. "Are you all right?"

"Fine," Jimmy answered. "Who were those guys? More bounty hunters?"

"Network security. You three must be hotter than I thought."

Jimmy was about to reply when a flashing dot on the edge of his navigation screen caught his eye. As he watched two more bright spots moved into view from the opposite side of the screen. All three began to converge towards the center of the tracking display "Trouble," was all he said.

"What is it?" asked Valtor.

Jimmy's voice was uncharacteristically tense. "There are three vessels closing in on me. Whatever they are, they're big."

After a pause Valtor replied. "Capital ships, probably from the Network."

"They don't seem to have detected us, Jimmy," came Exjay Nine's voice. "They seem to be intent on intercepting you. I estimate intercept time in approximately three chronals."

"Not good," Jimmy muttered. "Not good at all."

"Can't we outrun them?" Carl asked.

Jimmy shook his head. "There's no time to calculate a course before they reach us. There are some serious gravitational anomalies in this area. If we're off by even a little, we could end up running right into a planet or star."

Sheen looked worried. "What are we gonna do, Jimmy?"

"I'm not sure." Jimmy overlaid Exjay Nine's navigation charts over the display and studied them carefully. "Exjay Nine – what's this shaded band on Chart 107, bearing 126 mark 5?"

"That marks the extent of the Hysus Rapids," the robot replied. "It is an extensive asteroid field consisting of a mass of interstellar debris being hyper-accelerated into the Tysun Rift."

"Rift? I don't see any rift on the chart."

"I apologize, Jimmy," said Exjay Nine. "But the exact location of the rift is unknown. The intense gravitation makes its position impossible to determine. Consequently only the extents of the rapids are marked."

Jimmy studied the positions of the closing ships and that of the asteroid field and did some quick calculations. "I think I can make it there before those ships reach us," he decided.

This remark was met with silence from the occupants of both craft. In the Strato XL Carl and Sheen had no idea what Jimmy was considering while Tee was confident that Jimmy knew what he was talking about. In the Felangian vessel Captain Valtor, Exjay Nine, and Bubo simply couldn't believe what Jimmy was proposing. Valtor broke the silence first. "You aren't actually considering going _into_ an asteroid field?"

"Hey, it's their choice," Bubo observed.

"Jimmy, forgive my impertinence, but that would be suicide," protested Exjay Nine. "The odds of successfully navigating an asteroid field are approximately 3,720 to 1."

"Never tell me the odds!" Jimmy retorted.

"Yes, please don't tell him the odds," Carl begged. "Or at least don't let us hear them."

"Beside," Jimmy added as an afterthought, "you forgot to factor in the non-linear acceleration of the Rift's near-gravitational effects. The odds are closer to 8,517 to 1. We're going in." Having made his decision, Jimmy pulled the ship hard over, steering the ship directly towards the Hysus Rapids. Carl gave a bleat of dismay and even Tee's almost boundless confidence in Jimmy began to waver.

Tee grunted. "Are you sure you really want to do this Jimmy?"

"No choice, Tee," Jimmy answered. "Captain Valtor, meet us on the other side of the Rapids. If we aren't there when you arrive, well…" Jimmy swallowed. "I guess it'll be up to you. Exjay Nine will tell you what has to be done."

_The Terran is insane_, thought Valtor. All he said, however was, "I understand. But are you sure you want to do this?"

"It'll keep those ships off your back," Jimmy pointed out. "And I think you should learn what this ship can really do. Out."

"I already know what this ship can do," said Sheen. As had Jimmy and Carl, he had been through a meteor shower and didn't want to repeat the experience. "Couldn't we reconsider?"

"Look behind us," was Jimmy's terse reply.

Sheen, Carl, and Tee looked behind them. Far in the distance, but closing fast, was the small outline of a space ship. Although there was no way to accurately determine the size of the vessel, they could all see that it dwarfed the tiny rocket. As they watched, twin beams lanced out at them from the trailing ship as their pursuers tried some long-range shots. The barrage missed, but the secondary effects of the energy discharges rocked the craft, tossing the passengers violently from side to side.

"Okay, so let's hit some rapids!" Sheen decided.

"Sounds good to me," Carl agreed.

"Kick it, fool!" added Tee.

"You got it," Jimmy told him.

The rocket drove forward as the gunners on the pursuing ships began to find the range and a couple shots came perilously close, threatening to overload the deflector generators. At first the view ahead of the Strato XL revealed nothing but stars to the occupants of the craft. As they continued to watch, however, they began to discern fitful winks of light as starlight reflected off pieces of the cosmic debris that comprised the Hysus Rapids. Then, almost before they knew it, Jimmy and the others were within the field.

What followed next was, if the pun may be excused, unearthly. Contrary to popular belief most asteroid fields are actually fairly sparse, with each asteroid separated from its nearest neighbor by thousands of miles of empty space. The Hysus Rapids were much more congested, as the powerful pull of the gravitational rift concentrated the thin collection of interstellar matter into a lethal obstacle course. The velocity of the rocket that made navigating even an ordinary asteroid field a dangerous proposition, coupled with the ever-increasing acceleration of the asteroids themselves, made shooting the rapids an excursion into lunacy. Asteroids ranging in size from boulders to mountains appeared with terrifying suddenness, only to be evaded in the last instant by Jimmy's quick action.

Behind them the first attacking ship had been joined by the other vessels Jimmy had detected, but the commanding officers of the new arrivals subscribed to the belief that braving the rapids was insane and veered off before entering the field. The captain of the first pursuing vessel, however, was confident that the size and armaments of his ship were more than a match for any cosmic challenge that the puny Terran rocket would dare to face. He ordered his ship to maintain pursuit and for his crews to dispatch tracking drones to maintain contact with their quarry.

What the commander of the attack cruiser did not fully appreciate was that Jimmy had three distinct advantages in his favor. The first was that the Strato XL was far more responsive and agile than the fast but lumbering battle wagon chasing it, the best craft that an exceptional intellect if somewhat limited budget could contrive. The second was that Jimmy was a member of a generation weaned and raised on video games, with the superlative reflexes and instincts of an 11-year-old and a mind that could process information as fast as it received it. The third, and perhaps most important, was that Jimmy had nothing to lose. He dove deeper into the rapids with a determination that was nearly fanatical.

"Hey, Jimmy," said Sheen through clenched teeth as a blast from the attack cruiser vaporized an asteroid the size of his house off to his right. "Not that this isn't cool and all…"

"And it's not," Carl piped up, who had his hands over his eyes.

"…but what exactly are we doing here?"

Jimmy was too busy with the controls for a long answer. "Looking."

"Looking? For what?" Tee demanded.

Jimmy pointed off to his left. "For that!"

Tee followed Jimmy's gesture and through open spaces between the asteroids thought that he saw what seemed to be a faint tear against the bright backdrop of stars into which the asteroids around them seemed to be dropping. "What's that?"

"The Tysun Rift," was all Jimmy said. He wheeled the Strato over, dodging a rock that would have left them all a smear on its surface, and began gradually maneuvering towards it.

Sheen squinted at the almost-invisible rip in space with mixed confusion and apprehension. "Uh…Jimmy? I don't know much about astrology…"

"Astronomy, fool," Tee corrected him. "Astrology is about telling your future."

"Yeah, well, as I was saying, I don't think our future should have anything to do with that thing."

"Trust me," said Jimmy. "I know what I'm doing." _I hope_, he added to himself.

The captain of their attacker noted the change in the Strato's heading and altered his own course to maintain pursuit. He did not know nor care why his prey had changed direction. He knew only that he was gaining and that it was only a matter of time before one of his ship's weapons would atomize this intended target. Thus far the asteroids of the Hysus Rapids had proven a hindrance by diverting much of the ship's firepower to protecting the craft while simultaneously preventing the gunners from getting a clear shot at the rocket. It was with great satisfaction that the captain noted that the asteroids seemed to be clearing and that his weapons would have a clean shot very soon.

In fact, the asteroids were getting thicker but seemed to be clearing as the ships were now heading in the same direction at more or less the same velocity as the debris. Tee eyed the faint rift with growing concern. "We aren't flying into that thing, are we?"

"No," answered Jimmy. "We just need to get close enough."

Carl, his eyes still covered, asked, "Close enough for what?"

"Momentum."

"Our momentum?" Tee looked puzzled. "What's our momentum got to do with it?"

Jimmy smiled the enigmatic smile he sometimes wore as the Strato XL suddenly veered away. "I didn't say _our_ momentum."

Behind him the captain of the pursuit ship attempted to duplicate Jimmy's maneuver and was only now becoming aware that something was very wrong. While the attack ship was both fast and powerful, the far greater mass made it impossible to maneuver as well the Strato XL even under normal circumstances. Now the inexorable pull of the anomaly added to the ship's almost infinitely greater momentum and made any attempt to escape an exercise in futility. The ship had barely begun to respond when it slipped into the nearly invisible rift and disappeared.

Somewhere in the past, beyond the spiral galaxy known to Terran astronomers as M74, the attack cruiser re-emerged. Although the captain had no idea where or when the rift had deposited him and his crew, it might have comforted him to know that the time he would need to return to the Hyades Cluster would return him there not long after he had originally left it.

End of Chapter 8


	9. The Three Little Grontars

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 9:

Much of the broad corridor of the Network cruiser was dark, but no more so than the thoughts of the imposing figure who strode along it. Every fifty feet or so shafts of light stabbed down from unseen source overhead to mark the perimeters of the passageway, and in the shadows between them half-seen shapes of armed troopers could be discerned. They were all seasoned warriors, the ruthless elite of the Network accustomed to hard fighting and not given to mercy or restraint, but even so each one shrank further into the shadows as the dark shape passed, unwilling to draw any attention from their dark master. Lord Versile ignored them, troubled at the moment by more pressing matters.

Massive doors slid silently aside at his approach and closed just as noiselessly behind him as he entered the private communications chamber. He touched a switch and waited patiently as the silhouette of his own master, the Chairman of the Network, took shape. "Your report, Lord Versile?" The voice was clipped and authoritative, the tone that of one who was used to having their way and with no time to deal with trifles.

"Grave tidings, my master," Lord Versile replied somberly. "Our operatives at Mos Slimey have failed. The princess' allies have escaped."

Surprise crept into the chairman's voice. "Are you certain?"

"My source is most reliable. There can be no doubt." There was a trace of irritation in Lord Versile's reply at the suggestion he might be in error.

"This is unacceptable." The figure on the screen brooded. "Our plans are close to fruition. We can't afford to discount any possible threat to them, no matter how small."

"The threat is greater than we realized, my master. One of the Royal Guard is with them."

"_What?_"

"There can be no mistake. The bounty hunters we dispatched to intercept them at Mos Slimey Spaceport were among the best. Only one of the Royal Guard could have handled them so efficiently."

The chairman's reaction was that of a small boy told that his birthday party had been cancelled. "They were supposed to have been neutralized!"

"Apparently our efforts were not as efficacious as we had hoped them to be," was Lord Versile unperturbed response. He extracted a small cylinder from his robes and inserted the data record into a small slot in the console before him. A grainy two-dimensional image appeared on one side of the screen containing the indistinct shapes of three small humanoids, a larger cloaked figure, and what could only have been the mechanical shape of a robot. "My private agent could not risk sending a more detailed representation, but these are the ones we now seek."

The chairman was silent as he studied the blurry picture. He quickly passed over the shapes of the robot and cloaked figure and concentrated on the smaller shapes. One was taller and thinner than the other two, and the second more squat and rather portly. The third, however, seemed to possess a distinctive curlicue of a brown topknot. There was a hissing of air as the chairman sucked in a breath of recognition. "_Neutron!_" The chairman pressed several buttons, activating private communication channels as Lord Versile waited silently. Three other images joined that of the chairman.

"This had better be good," one complained. "I was in the shower."

"And just who are you trying to fool, Junkman?" another retorted. "You never took a shower in your life."

"I never said I was _taking_ a shower, Goobot," the Junkman snapped back. "Since I never use it, I was trying to figure out how much it might be worth. Anyone care to make an offer?"

The third newcomer scoffed. "Forget it. Anything from your ship I wouldn't touch without a full protective enviro-suit. That sort of defeats the purpose of getting into a shower in the first place. Besides, I'm tapped out."

The chairman's limited patience came to an end. "Junkman! Goobot! Khormak! Enough of this!"

"That's 'King Goobot', if you please," the Yokian sniffed.

"And 'Minister Khormak'," the Felangian put in.

"And…well, 'Junkman' is correct," the Junkman admitted. "But you could say 'please'. It never hurts to be polite in business. Especially," he added pointedly, "to your financial backers."

The chairman reigned in his temper. "As you wish. But I'm afraid we have problems. Big problems."

"If it's more money, forget it. I'm leveraged to the hilt," the Junkman replied.

"As am I," agreed King Goobot. "I've spent practically the entire Yokian treasury backing this scheme of yours so far."

Khormak nodded. "And I've called in every favor and pulled every string I could to help you out."

"All for a price," the chairman reminded them. "Just remember, once we pull this off you'll all be well-rewarded."

The Junkman's voice held a threatening edge. "We'd better be. You've got the better part of three entire planetary systems backing you."

"I'd say having exclusive trading rights within the Network's sphere of influence is a fair return for you, Junkman. And I think that returning control of Felangie to Minister Khormak and handing over Earth as a perpetual source of tribute and sacrifices to Yolkus is quite agreeable to your associates."

The three all murmured assent, rubbing manipulators and almost salivating with anticipation. King Goobot recovered from his reverie of greed and excess first. "But you said there was a problem. What is it?"

"Neutron."

The three conspirators reacted to the one word with simultaneous shock. "The Terran water sack?" the Junkman demanded to know. "What's he got to do with it?"

"Somehow he's gotten wind of what's going on. He was seen nosing around Mos Slimey Spaceport with some friends."

"How much does he know?" asked Khormak.

"I don't know," the chairman admitted. "But I don't think that any of us want to underestimate him again."

"Decidedly not," agreed King Goobot.

"What's your plan?" asked the Junkman.

It was Lord Versile who answered. "The Network fleet has effectively interdicted the Alliance and is intercepting all long-range communications. Neutron and his friends are alone. They can't reach the Alliance with any information they may have without assistance. The first duty of the Royal Guard in any case is to protect and serve the princess. They will undoubtedly attempt to rescue her."

"I see," said the Junkman. "So you think that we should eliminate the princess and put an end to that plan?"

"No. I think that we should let them attempt it."

This proposal was greeted by stunned silence from all. "Are you certain they'd even try?" asked the chairman. "They couldn't hope to succeed. Not even a regiment of Royal Guard could do it. How could these children hope to do so?"

There was a low rumble from the dark lord that might have been a threatening growl or a burst of derisive laughter. "Never underestimate the power of friendship. They will try. And I will be waiting for them."

Khormak raised an obvious point. "They don't even know where the princess is being held. How can they even get to her?"

"Leave that to me. Before it was lost in the Hysus Rapids one of the pursuit ships dispatched tracking drones to follow Neutron's ship. I can use that to ensure that the princess' whereabouts are discovered."

The Junkman looked skeptical. "I don't know about this, Lord Versile. I mean, even if your plan suc-"

The Junkman's words were cut off as one tenatative hand, then another, went to his throat. His usually green face changed subtly to a peculiar shade of grey as King Goobot and Khormak watched uneasily. "'If'?" Lord Versile repeated softly. His voice resonated as he stood motionless and watched impassively. "I find your lack of faith disturbing."

The Junkman's face was now turning blue. All four of his hands clawed futilely at the invisible presence slowly constricting his windpipe and depriving him of precious air. Satisfied that Lord Versile had made his point, the chairman snapped, "Enough of this! Release him!"

Lord Versile seemed to shrug without moving. "As you wish." The Junkman let out a shriek as welcome air rushed back into the oxygen-starved organs that, had he been he human, would be called lungs.

The chairman eyed his co-conspirators coldly, sure that his minion had made his point. "I trust we're all agreed to try Lord Verile's plan?"

"Absolutely. Just love it," gushed King Goobot.

"Behind you one hundred percent," Khormak hurried to reassure the Network chairman.

"No problem here," croaked the Junkman.

"Very well. Transmission ended." The shadowy figured deactivated the communication channels and turned his full attention to Lord Versile. "Was that demonstration absolutely necessary?"

"No," the sinister agent replied. "But power is meant to be used. Power unused is useless power."

"I'm not disputing that. But until our plans our complete, we need them."

"They have their purpose," Lord Versile admitted. "For the moment."

The chairman nodded in agreement. "For the moment. But should you be forming any personal plans, just remember this," the chairman cautioned. "What one can give, one can take away just as easily. Are we clear on that?"

The dark lord bowed his head. "Yes, my master."

"Excellent. Now, I believe that the Junkman had some valid concerns regarding your plan. What do you suppose rescuing the princess could accomplish?"

"The princess is a symbol. Free, she could rally her people to a successful revolt against our plans. In time, that could spread throughout the galaxy."

Lord Versile heard the Chairman of the Network scoff. "She is just a child."

"She is of the royal caste of Felangie. Her every instinct is to serve the best interests of her people. She also has the idealism of youth. Being a child makes her all the more dangerous, not less."

The chairman pondered that. "How do you propose to stop them?"

"I have considered that. I believe that intercepting Neutron and his colleagues would be an excellent test of the new battle-drones with which our…allies…have provided us."

"Yes." The chairman nodded, pleased to kill two birds with one stone. "Yes. An excellent test. Make the necessary preparations. Just be sure you succeed." The voice darkened. "I'm taking a grave risk, Lord Versile. Failure is not an option."

Lord Versile bowed low. "It will be done, my master." He remained bowing until the communications screen went dark, and then turned and exited the chamber. As he made his way back down the dimly lit corridor, he scrutinized every aspect of his plan. _Neutron, his two companions, and a Royal Guardsman_, he thought. The odds seemed hopelessly stacked against them, but Lord Versile was not one to overlook any detail or leave anything to chance. _Never underestimate the power of friendship_, he reminded himself.

End of Chapter 9


	10. Traces

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 10:

Without a Network battle cruiser to hound him, the task of threading the myriad asteroids that made up the Hysus Rapids was, if not easy, at least something that Jimmy could manage. He had assured Captain Valtor that the Strato XL would be waiting on the other side by the time the shuttle pod completed the longer but far safer detour around the swarm, and to meet that deadline Jimmy was forced to travel much faster than prudence demanded. He could not have hoped to survive the perilous trip alone, as the constantly shifting gravitational forces within the rapids hurled planetary rubble not just in front of the vessel, but from all directions. More than once a shouted warning from Sheen, Carl, or Tee alerted him just in time to avoid being blindsided by an asteroid that would have left the Strato and its occupants just so much more cosmic debris in the Hysus Rapids.

From time to time they would hit a void in the asteroid swarm, caused perhaps by the complex interplay of the forces of the Tysun Rift and the numerous celestial objects in its sway. During one of these lulls Jimmy stared at the countless stars scattered about them, hard points of light of almost every color imaginable shining in an endless black deeper than anything that could be seen from Earth. _I wish I'd brought Goddard along_, he thought wistfully, _but he's safer where he is_.

"Man," he heard Sheen say. "I wish that Libby could see this. It's beautiful out here."

"She had her chance," Jimmy replied evenly, although he couldn't keep all of the bitterness from his voice.

Carl looked around in mixed wonder and puzzlement. "Which one of those stars is Earth?"

"Earth isn't a star, Carl. And you can't see it at this distance. From here even Sol doesn't look like much."

"Sol? Sol who?" Carl blinked. "I don't know anyone named Sol. Unless maybe you mean Sol Rabinowitz, that one kid whose parents own that delicatessen back in Retroville."

Jimmy grunted. "Not Sol anybody. Sol is the name for our sun. It's where we get the word 'solar'."

"Well, which one is the Sun then?"

Jimmy did some figuring in his head and pointed towards the starboard rear quarter and up about 30 degrees. "That way."

Sheen and Carl stared hard in the direction that Jimmy had indicated, feeling somewhat homesick. "There sure are a lot in that direction. Which one of them are you pointing at?"

Jimmy shrugged. "Take your pick. At this distance I'd need to take some parallax or spectroscopic readings to tell." To himself he thought, _Does it really matter? We might as well be from some other place for all the help people at home were willing to give us._

"Heads up, Jimmy," Tee spoke up. "It looks like were getting back into the soup."

"Thanks, Tee," Jimmy answered, grateful for the warning and for interrupting the direction the conversation had started to take. He forced thoughts of home and the people he had left behind from his mind and turned his attention back to negotiating the treacherous rapids. Even so, he could not help taking one last look in the direction he knew Earth to be before resuming his piloting duties.

Several dozen light-years away Cindy was sitting outside Jimmy's clubhouse, tracing patterns on the ground with a stick. From time to time she stared up at the stars that were slowly becoming visible in the darkening sky. The Hyades Cluster was still too low on the horizon for her to see, but she recognized a number of constellations swinging high overhead. Most of them she had learned on her own, but some few Jimmy had taught her – usually by correcting her when she misidentified a star or stellar group. Usually the memory would have made her seethe, but this evening it didn't seem to make any difference.

"So there you are." Cindy looked up to see Libby approaching her. "Where you been, girl? All the other kids are at the Candy Bar. There's some new TV show starting tonight that's supposed to be the bomb. It's all anyone can talk about. Nick thought it would be cool to have a party and watch it together."

Cindy's voice was flat. "Hey, great," was all she said.

Libby sat down beside her. "Something wrong?"

"Wrong?" Cindy looked surprised. "No, nothing's wrong. Why?"

"Cindy, I've known you since we were pre-K. The last place you'd be is hanging in is Jimmy's back yard if there wasn't something wrong." When Cindy didn't answer Libby pressed on. "You aren't having second thoughts about not going with Jimmy, are you?"

Cindy laughed, a little too loudly. "No. No, of course not. Because that would…I mean, I meant what I said. If I changed my mind about that now it would make me look…"

"Weak?"

"Weak." Cindy nodded her head vigorously. "Exactly. It would look like I was weak and…well, I can't have Jimmy taking me for granted, can I?" She gave Libby a sidelong look. "Can I?"

"No." Libby shook her head. "Absolutely not. Like with Sheen. I mean, I really like him and all, but…well, you cave on one thing and the next thing you know…"

"No doubt."

"Got that right."

"Absolutely." There was a pause before Cindy spoke again. "You weren't thinking that maybe you should have gone with Sheen, were you?"

"What?" It was Libby's turn to seem surprised. "Absolutely not, girl. Like I said, I really like Sheen, but if he doesn't need me enough to stay here then I don't need him enough to go chasing after him."

"I hear you."

"Straight up," Libby went on firmly. "There are a lot more where he came from. Like Nick."

"True enough," agreed Cindy.

"I mean, do you remember the first time we saw Sheen at Lindbergh Elementary? He was a couple grades ahead of us and we weren't paying any attention to him. Then all of a sudden we hear this awful commotion and there comes Principal Willoughby dragging this skinny kid behind him who's yelling, '"Detention"? What do you mean "detention"? You can't put me in detention! I'm one of the Ultra Legion! Just write Ultra Lord in care of you local station! He'll tell you! I've got a membership card! I've got diplomatic immunity!'"

Cindy nodded. "I remember."

"And I told you, 'Girlfriend, if you ever see me falling for a loser like that I want you to give a me a good swift kick'."

"I never did give that to you," Cindy commented.

If Libby heard Cindy she gave no sign of it. "Of course, Nick doesn't make me laugh like Sheen does," she continued. "Like when we were in that Yolkian transport being chased by King Goobot and those other ships and Sheen was singing, 'Ultra Lord is not afra-a-aid of chickens, he is not a afra-a-aid of chickens'?" And then one of the missiles hits us and he started singing, 'He may be a little bit afra-a-aid of chickens'."

Cindy smiled, remembering.

"I was scared then, too, but it helped, somehow." Libby's smile faded. "And it was Sheen who got that transport for us in the first place."

"I know. He really surprised me," Cindy remarked.

"Me, too. I guess you never really know somebody until something like that happens."

"No, you never really do."

"I wish I'd said something that day. Life can be rough enough without thinking no one understands you." For a long time neither girl spoke. Then Libby asked, "What are you thinking about?"

"That first day in second grade, when I realized that Neutron had ruined my life. I was the best student at Lindbergh Elementary and by the end of the day everyone knew I wasn't. It was the only thing I really had that was mine and Neutron took it all away with his showing off in class and building those science projects that no one else could possibly have done. I never really understood then, but I should have."

Libby didn't ask what Cindy meant by that. She had been friends with Cindy long enough to understand that Cindy would explain in her own way and her own time.

"All those perfect tests…all those questions he always answered…all those science fairs he always won…he was never showing off. He was never trying to make me feel like I wasn't as good. He just wanted to do his best, like I did. But he did it because he was really smart and wanted to do the right thing. That's all he ever really wanted. I didn't really start catching on to that until the Yolkians took our parents. Neutron never really ruined my life. He just changed it. If anyone ever ruined my life because of that, I guess it was me." This was followed by another long silence. Eventually Cindy asked, "Do you suppose that they really know us?"

"Who?" Libby stalled.

"You know."

"Oh. Well…" Libby considered it. "I don't know. I don't think boys ever really know girls."

Cindy shook her head. "Boys never really _understand_ girls. But do you think that they can ever really _know_ us? The way we think we know them?"

Libby wondered about this. "Why do you ask?"

Cindy simply looked down and resumed tracing shapes on the ground with a stick, although it was getting to be too dark to see what she was tracing. "Go look behind the clubhouse."

"Behind the clubhouse?" Libby sounded surprised. "Why?"

"Just go and look."

Both confused and annoyed by Cindy's mysterious manner Libby pulled herself to her feet and walked around the corner behind the small structure. For a long moment she peered into the gloom, trying to make out the dark shape squatting silently there in the blackness. When at last her eyes had adjusted enough to make out and recognize the shape, she called out, "Is this what I think it is?"

"Yes," Cindy called back. "It's that car from the Retroland Fire Drill ride that the two of us used for the trip to Yolkus."

Libby re-emerged from behind the building. "What's it doing here? I thought Jimmy said it was out in space somewhere."

"He must have brought it back."

"But we all said we weren't going. Why would he do that? Didn't he believe us?"

"I think he did." Although Libby couldn't see Cindy's face in the darkness the quaver in Cindy's voice told Libby how she must have been feeling. "But I think he was counting on us to go. Maybe it didn't matter to him about the others. But I think he was depending…I think he trusted us to help him."

Libby sat down next to Cindy again and tried to sort things out. What Cindy had said made sense to her. Apart from Sheen and Carl, she and Cindy were, for lack of a better way to put it, Jimmy's oldest and closest friends. It would have been like Jimmy to expect their help, and even more in his nature not to have shown it by hiding the improvised spacecraft as he had done. "So now what?" was all she could say.

"I don't know. We weren't going to go before. Nothing's really changed, has it?"

"I'm not so sure about that," Libby answered slowly.

"What do you mean?"

"I mean," Libby replied, "that things haven't really changed, but maybe we weren't really looking at things quite right. Maybe we just didn't understand just how important this was to Jimmy. Okay, maybe running around trying to save the galaxy doesn't mean anything to us, but helping a friend because it's important to them should. Even if they do believe in things no one else does."

Cindy turned her head to stare at Libby's silhouette in the darkness. "Are we still talking about Jimmy? Or are you talking about Sheen now?"

"I don't know," Libby answered honestly. "Maybe we're not talking about either one. Maybe we're talking about what this crazy mission was all about in the first place. Things like…I don't know…doing the right thing, maybe"

"And duty."

"Loyalty."

"Friendship."

As Cindy had done previously Libby looked up, silently taking in the starry expanse that lay above them. She and Cindy had been in space a number of times before with Jimmy, and each time the beauty and vastness and grandeur of it all had left her filled awe. _Where are they now?_ she wondered as her eyes moved from one bright star to another. The question was like a blast of cold water in her face. "So, how do we find them?" she asked aloud.

"What? What do you mean?"

Although Cindy couldn't see it Libby gave her a knowing look. "You weren't waiting sitting out here for me. You were planning on going after Jimmy, weren't you?" She cut short Cindy's protestations. "Don't try to deny it. I'm surprised you didn't tell me about it."

"There's no reason for you to go."

Libby's voice was firm. "Jimmy isn't the only one up there. And like I said, maybe this really isn't about them. The only question is, how do we find them? It's not like they left a trail of bread crumbs to follow. They could be anywhere by now."

"That wouldn't stop Neutron from trying," Cindy pointed out.

"Girl, I know that. But what can we do? Just go shooting out into space and then hope for the best? Stop at some interstellar service station and ask for directions?"

Cindy's reply was interrupted by the sound of Jimmy's clubhouse door opening and small metallic feet emerging from within as Goddard, his daily nap finished, headed towards the house. Sensing the two girls sitting in the darkness, the robotic canine stopped and turned, illuminating them with the soft glow from his photoreceptors. Cindy smiled as Goddard looked from one to the other.

"Maybe we won't have to," she said.

End of Chapter 10

Author's Notes:

Come on, did anyone _really_ believe that Cindy and Libby wouldn't get in on this eventually?


	11. The Gang's All Here

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 11:

"Just a little while longer, guys," Jimmy reassured his friends. "They should be here soon."

"I sure hope so," whimpered Carl. "Your rocket is great and all, but…well, it could really use a bathroom."

Sheen clucked his tongue. "You're such a baby," he chided. "If you could hold it in when we were being chased by that other space ship, then why can't you wait until the others get here?"

Carl looked embarrassed. "Well, actually…" he began.

"Told you!" Jimmy crowed in triumph. He pointed to a bright dot on the navigation screen approaching the center of the display which was their position. "We beat them here after all. I knew we could do it. 'Piece of junk' indeed!" he snorted.

Tee growled, unhappy at the thought that anyone would have doubted a friend's abilities. "That'll teach that fool. Teach him good."

"You can say that again. I -" Jimmy broke off to stare at the screen again. "Wait a minute. That's not right."

Carl blinked. "What's not right?"

"He means that you don't say 'left' and 'right' when you're on a spaceship," explained Sheen. "You use those boaty words like Captain Betty does."

That didn't make the situation any clearer for Carl. "What words?"

"You know. Like instead of saying, 'Off to the right', you say, 'Thataway'. And instead of saying, 'Ouch', you say all those words that get you in trouble with your parents."

"I dunno," Carl said doubtfully. "Is that right, Jimmy?"

Jimmy had only been partially listening. "No. I mean that there's another ship approaching from astern. And pretty fast, too."

"Is it that ship we lost before?" asked Tee.

Jimmy shook his head. "I doubt it. A rift as big as the one they got pulled into probably put them at least a few millennia away and probably in another galaxy." He began adjusting controls and pressing buttons. "But whoever it is, we'd better be ready for them. I'm charging up the main armaments batteries. Sheen, take shotgun."

Sheen crawled into the seat next to Jimmy and buckled himself in. "But who else would know where we are? And how?" he asked.

"I've been thinking about that," Jimmy replied. "And I think I know who and how." He touched a switch and a small console similar to a video game controller swung up from under the dash and positioned itself in front of Sheen. At the same time a holographic reticule solidified in front of him. "All right. I've designed the gun controls so that they're identical to the controls for your Ultra Lord Stellar Squadron game. You shouldn't have any problems using it. But don't fire unless I say."

"Say what?" asked Sheen, fingering the familiar control pad.

Jimmy maneuvered the rocket, preparing to confront the unknown newcomer. "'Fire'."

"Right." Sheen depressed the dual trigger controls, unleashing twin bolts of devastation from the Strato XL's undercarriage, and then recoiled from Jimmy's vicious glare. "What?"

He was spared Jimmy's savage response by a voice from the Strato's speaker. "Hey! Guys! What's your damage, yo?"

"Libby?" Sheen cried, both surprised and delighted.

"You're lucky it's me," Libby's voice came back. "A little more to the left and it would have been the Ashes Formerly Known as Libby."

"Libby?" Jimmy sounded as confused as he felt. "What are you doing out here?"

"You're welcome," another familiar and often irritating voice said. "Forty light-years we travel to reach him and that's the best greeting he can come up with."

Jimmy wasn't sure whether to be happy to hear the voice or annoyed by the insult. "Cindy? What are you both…how did you find us?"

A bark sounded over the speaker, immediately lifting Jimmy's spirits. "That's how. It's a good thing that Goddard knows your rocket's energy signature."

For the first time since the mission began Jimmy sounded truly happy. "Goddard! How are you, boy?"

Goddard barked joyously as Cindy scowled. "Nice to see you again, too, flyboy," she muttered unhappily.

Cindy and Libby were now close enough for the Strato's occupants to make out the second spaceship approaching them. As it drew alongside Libby called out, "I thought you were on your way to Gorlock or someplace. So what are you waiting for around here?"

Jimmy pointed to another vessel approaching from the opposite direction. "That."

"We had to split up for a while," Sheen explained. "We all agreed to meet up here."

Cindy studied the silvery orb as it slowed to a stop. "I wonder what he'll say when he sees us here."

"Probably 'What a piece of junk'," Jimmy minced with a scowl.

"Probably," Carl agreed.

Tee growled menacingly. "He better not. No one calls any of my friends' ships a piece of junk. I pity the fool if he tries. Pity him bad."

"Hello, Jimmy," Exjay Nine's voice greeted them from the rockets' speakers. "Despite the great danger they may soon face, I'm very pleased to see that Miss Vortex and Miss Folfax have joined us."

"That's more like it," Cindy declared with satisfaction. She shot Jimmy a venomous look. "Some people act like doing them a favor is a capital crime."

"I never -" Jimmy started to protest.

"Well, you sure didn't -" Cindy countered.

Carl clapped his hands over his ears. "Stop it! Stop it! That's not what we're supposed to be worrying about now!"

The outburst silenced both Jimmy and Cindy, who both looked somewhat ashamed. "I guess he's right, Neutron," Cindy said quietly.

Jimmy rubbed the back of his head in embarrassment. "I guess so, Vortex. Truce?"

Cindy extended her hand and shook his. "Truce."

"That's better," proclaimed Tee. "We're all in this together. That's what friends do." Unable to contain himself any longer he leaned forward and held out his arms. "I love you fools!"

"No hugs!" everyone shrieked, backing away.

Unfortunately for Sheen, who was still strapped into the gunner's seat and couldn't avoid the alien's aggressive bear hug, found the breath being crushed out of him. "Not…really…time…for this," he gasped.

"He's right," said Jimmy. "First things first."

"Right!" Carl agreed emphatically. After Tee had released Sheen from his enthusiastic embrace, Carl went on. "Now, does anyone here have a bathroom?"

"No, Carl," Jimmy said impatiently. "I meant about finding the princess. The first problem is figuring out where she's been taken."

"Maybe we could put up posters," suggested Sheen. "It worked when I lost my cat."

"How about offering a reward?" offered Tee.

Jimmy sighed. "Guys, we have to do this on our own. And we have to do it fast. Is there anything about the princess that might give us a lead?"

"Well, she has fabulous taste in clothes," said Libby.

"And don't forget the jewelry," Cindy put in.

"And she smells really good," added Carl dreamily. "Kind of like Jimmy's mom when she's just…" He trailed off as he became aware of everyone staring at him. "..finished baking some cookies," he finished lamely.

"I guess none of that really helps, does it?" said Libby.

Cindy shook her head. "Not unless there are any four star prisons listed in the galactic yellow pages. Sorry, Neutron. I guess we weren't much use after all."

Jimmy, however, wasn't listening anymore. "Come on, Jimmy," he muttered. "Think. Think! _Think!_"

_And she smells really good…_

_And don't forget the jewelry…_

_It's a good thing Goddard knows your rocket's energy signature…_

"Brain blast!" he cried. "We'll use the princess' energy signature to track her!"

"Oh, great," snorted Cindy. "Maybe you haven't really noticed, Neutron, but there's a slight difference between rocket engines and girls."

"Yes, I know," Jimmy shot back. "Girls are a lot noisier."

"Here we go again," sighed Sheen.

"Yep," Carl nodded.

Tee growled menacingly. "Jimmy! Cindy! Stick to the program. Don't make me hug you two fools." Jimmy and Cindy quickly subsided. "That's better. What's your plan, Jimmy?"

"Okay," Jimmy continued. "Cindy and Libby found us by having Goddard track the Strato's energy signature."

"Which was my idea," Cindy quickly pointed out. Jimmy scowled at her interruption and Tee leaned forward to hug her, causing her to back-pedal and wave them both off. "I'm just saying, is all."

Frowning, Jimmy went on. "The princess owns some very rare and exotic jewelry. We can scan for the energy signatures of that jewelry to find her. Does anyone remember what type of jewelry she usually wore?"

Libby frowned, trying to remember. "I seem to recall a blue brooch she always wore on her left shoulder."

Jimmy called on his exceptional memory to verify that. "I remember that. You're sure that she always wore it?"

"That would be the engagement pin her father gave to her mother when the royal banns were posted," spoke up Exjay Nine. "She treasured it and was never without it to my knowledge."

"How romantic," murmured Cindy.

"Do you know what type of gem it was?" asked Jimmy.

"Yes," Exjay Nine replied. "It was a very rare variety of Felangian stellapis."

Jimmy looked thoughtful. "I'm not familiar with that substance. Do you have any record of its atomic structure? Goddard and I can try to derive the necessary quantum resonances from that, but it would take us a little while to generate the complete spectrum."

It was Captain Valtor who spoke next. "That might not be necessary."

"Huh?" Jimmy had forgotten all about the Felangian, who up to now had been silent. "What do you mean?"

"While you were having your quite…interesting…discussion about the situation, we've intercepted a most useful piece of information over one of the Network's covert point-to-point signals. Although it did not, quite understandably, mention the princess by name, it indicated that a person of some importance was being transported to Calador 6 in the Cthulhu star group."

Jimmy activated the navigation screen and performed a quick search. "I don't see any mention of 'Kalador 6' or 'Calador 6' on my charts," he announced.

"Not surprising," Bubo piped up. "Information for that region wasn't transferred over to your limited computation system. It's not a very important planet – more of a large asteroid, actually. There isn't much of interest in that entire star group."

"Which makes it an ideal place for the Network to conduct clandestine activities," Captain Valtor concluded.

Jimmy pulled up charts for the charted regions surrounding them and did some quick calculations. "I guess not." His voice sounded non-committal, but Cindy had known Jimmy more than long enough to recognize some hidden worry on his face. "How do you propose we get to the princess?"

"Simple enough. I think that we can approach from course 069 Mark -2 and land without detection. Once on the asteroid Captain Wheezer and I can infiltrate the facility and rescue Princess Leama while the rest of you create a diversion."

"It sounds kind of risky," Jimmy commented doubtfully, "especially for you guys."

"This entire mission has been risky," Captain Valtor returned, sounding somewhat miffed. "And risk is never a deciding factor for the Royal Guard."

"He has a point," said Libby. "Any place they've taken her is not going to be easy to get into."

Carl looked worried. "Or out of."

Jimmy still hesitated. "I don't know. There must be a better way. If I had a little time I'm sure that I could -"

"Oh, for crying out loud, Nerd-tron!" Cindy exploded. "You're the one who said we had to act fast. So Captain Valtor found out something without any help from you and your brain blast was just a big waste of brain power. Just because you don't think of something first doesn't mean that it's no good."

"That has nothing to do with it!" Jimmy retorted heatedly. "I'm just worried that -"

"Regardless of you decision, Master Neutron," Captain Valtor cut in, sounding harsh, "my duty and decision is to act to free the princess, and I intend to do just that. You are free to act as you see fit. Sir Wheezer!"

"Huh?" Carl answered.

"You are an honorary member of the Royal Guard. I will leave it up to you. Will you join me in this attempt or stay behind with your friends?"

"Well…" Carl considered it. "Does your ship have a bathroom?"

"There are indeed accommodations aboard, should you require them," answered Exjay Nine.

Carl began climbing over the side of the Strato XL. "That's good enough for me. See you, guys."

The main hatch of the shuttle pod opened and admitted Carl while the rest of the group looked expectantly at Jimmy. "Well?" Cindy demanded. "Friends stick together. Isn't that what you said?"

"I…" Jimmy looked troubled, and then resigned. "I guess so. I guess we're coming too, Captain Valtor."

The High Captain's voice softened somewhat. "Excellent. I'm pleased to see that the faith of Her Highness was not misplaced. We will discuss and finalize the details of the operation on the way."

The shuttle pod got underway, followed by Cindy and Libby in their small craft. Jimmy fired up the engines of his own rocket and fell in behind them, only half-listening to Captain Valtor's suggestions and instructions.

"Man," commented Sheen in an attempt to break the unusual silence. "I guess we're pretty luck to have Captain Valtor with us, aren't we?"

"I guess so," Jimmy replied without any enthusiasm.

"And it was sure a lucky break he intercepted that transmission, wasn't it?"

"Yes." Sheen couldn't quite place the tone of Jimmy's reply. "Very."

End of Chapter 11


	12. Into the Trap

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 12:

It was a fact that, in every measurable way, Jimmy was a super-genius. He had been aware of that fact almost from the moment his parents woke one morning to find him reading one of the volumes of the _Encyclopedia Retrovillia_ in his crib. Most parents would have lapsed into hysterics, but Hugh and Jydy Neutron, much like Jimmy himself, were not like most people. Hugh had simply told Jimmy to have enough light when he was reading so that he wouldn't hurt his eyes, while Judy simply put some books with inappropriate pre-schooler content safely out of reach and made breakfast. Since then almost all of Jimmy's world had centered around fact, reason, and logic.

Almost all, but not quite. An annoyingly unquantifiable entity – be it insight, inspiration, or intuition – still pervaded his existence. It was that immeasurable something that let him leap at times beyond isolated facts and conventional logic to generate what he and others had come to call 'brain blasts'. It was that same unknown factor that told him that he and the others were heading straight into a trap. He did not stop to question exactly how he had arrived at that conclusion. A much more pressing matter was how to deal with it. Although Sheen and Tee had dozed off he dared not use the spacecraft's communications equipment for fear of who might overhear the transmission. He briefly considered pulling alongside Cindy and Libby's ship and just speaking directly to them but rejected that option as well. Based on Cindy's earlier accusations he was sure that she would dismiss his warnings as simple paranoia or egotistic jealousy, or even worse, openly discuss the subject when the wrong party was listening. After some more thought, he activated his wrist-comp and dialed a private number. There was a brief ringing tone and he heard Goddard activate his end of the communications link.

"Goddard?" he asked softly.

There was a soft bark of acknowledgement. Goddard had recognized Jimmy's covert voice and, implicitly understanding that Jimmy did not want anyone else to overhear their conversation, had automatically muted his external speakers.

"Good boy, Goddard. Now, listen carefully." Technically this was a needless request, as Goddard automatically recorded everything and could, if necessary, replay Jimmy's exact message at will, but Jimmy did not think of Goddard as a data collection unit and spoke to the robotic canine just as he would have addressed any of his friends. "I've got a bad feeling about what we're heading into. The problem is that I can't warn anyone without possibly making things a lot worse. Understand?"

There was another soft bark.

"Okay." Jimmy began pressing some buttons on his wrist-comp as he continued to talk. "I'm opening access to some of your secure features so that Cindy or Libby can access them if they need to. I can't say what might happen, but you'll know it when the time comes. I'm counting on you, Goddard. Don't let me down."

Goddard gave a final reassuring bark and the connection went dead. With a sigh Jimmy deactivated his wrist-comp and resumed the monotonous yet nerve-wracking task of following the other ships. Occasionally he would scrutinize his navigation screen, alert to anything that might confirm his fears of a trap, but each time saw nothing of apparent concern. About an hour passed uneventfully when Sheen awoke, yawning and stretching. "Are we there yet?" he asked blearily.

"No," replied Jimmy.

"Oh, man," Sheen grumbled. "I thought space travel was supposed to be exciting."

"Be glad that it's boring. It might get a lot more exciting than you'd want."

Sheen gave him a puzzled look. "Why do you say that?"

Their conversation had apparently also woken Tee, who also stretched hugely. "Yeah, Jimmy. Why could it get exciting?" he asked.

Jimmy briefly debated with himself about bringing them into his confidence. One the one hand he had no solid facts to back up his suspicions, but on the other hand it wasn't fair to keep them uninformed about the possible danger into which they could be heading. Then, too, they might have some ideas on how to deal with the situation. He made his decision and shut off the Strato's communications transmitter.

"What did you do that for?" Tee asked. "What if they need to talk with us?"

"I only killed the transmitter," Jimmy answered. "We can hear them, but they can't hear us."

Sheen still looked baffled. "Why do you care if they hear us?"

"Because someone in this group is a traitor and I don't want them to know that I know."

Jimmy's frank reply sent chills down Sheen's spine. When he could speak again, he asked, "It's not me, is it?"

"What you talking about, fool?" Tee said scornfully. "Why would Jimmy turn off the radio so the traitor couldn't hear if the traitor was in this ship? Right, Jimmy?" Jimmy nodded wordlessly. "See? I told you I wasn't dumb."

"No one thinks you're dumb, Tee," Jimmy assured the alien.

"You better not. Because if either of you two fools do, I'll squish you, friend or no friend. Squish you good, you hear?"

Sheen simply nodded. "Not dumb. Squish us good. Got it."

"That's good." There was a moment of silence as Tee thought thing over. "It's not me, is it?"

"Tee -" Jimmy tried to explain.

Tee refused to be stopped while he was on a roll. "Because if you think I'm the traitor, you'd better just up and say so. But you better say it fast, because I'll bust you up. You got that? Hmm? Hmm?" He stared defiantly at both Jimmy and Sheen.

Jimmy shook his head. "You aren't the traitor, Tee."

"And you're sure that I'm not the traitor either, right?" asked Sheen. "Because once in a while I have these kind of…well, they aren't exactly blackouts, but -"

"Do you two want to hear what I have to say or not?" Jimmy said irritably.

Tee and Sheen looked at each other. "Go ahead," Tee finally said.

"All right, then. I think that the traitor is Bubo."

Tee blinked. "Bubo?"

"That little round guy?" asked Sheen. "Are you sure? I mean, he's like the cute little talking metal softball brother that I never had."

"Yes and no." Jimmy went over the list of facts in his mind. "Do you remember when Exjay Nine first suggested that we go to Mos Slimey Spaceport?"

"I think so," Sheen replied slowly, recalling the incident. "Bubo was so upset about the idea that he made our speaker squeal."

"He did," nodded Jimmy. "But was he really that upset? Or was he actually transmitting our destination to someone nearby? Those bounty hunters couldn't have picked up our trail to Mos Slimey so quickly. They were there waiting for us. Somebody tipped them off while we were still on the way, and I know that it wasn't any of us. It had to have been Exjay Nine or Bubo."

"Himm." Sheen rubbed his chin. "Interesting. Anything else?"

"Yes. Remember how the bounty hunters found us?"

It was Tee who nodded this time. "Yes. Bubo had wandered off and some bounty hunter spotted him and started chasing him."

"Was the bounty hunter chasing him? Or did Bubo actually go off and lead him back to us?"

Tee thought about it. "The first shot he got off actually was at Carl," he conceded.

"Exactly." Jimmy looked grim. "And now we're heading somewhere because someone on that Felangian shuttle-pod so conveniently intercepted a point-to-point transmission with just the information we needed."

"And you think that that's a little too convenient?"

"Absolutely, Sheen. A point-to-point transmission is a tight signal that goes in a straight line. To intercept it that pod had to be right in its path at just the right time. I checked the navigation charts right after Captain Valtor told me about the interception, and from the limited star charts I have there was nothing else in the direction of that transmission. Either someone in the pod was the intended recipient, or there never was a transmission at all and someone was lying about receiving one." Jimmy scowlded. "And I'll just bet that Bubo was the one who told Captain Valtor about the message."

Sheen and Tee both considered this. It was Sheen who said it first. "But, Jimmy, if the message was a fake, then we're headed…"

"…into a trap," Jimmy finished. "I know."

"What? You know? So why are we going along, fool?" demanded Tee.

"Hey, I tried to talk you people out of this!" Jimmy snapped with a ferocity that made both Tee and Sheen blink. "But Captain Valtor and Cindy thought I was being some kind of cowardly worry-wart." With some effort he succeeded in mastering his rage. "And at least this way Bubo doesn't know that we know," he continued. "If he suspected that we did, I don't know what he'd do. Captain Valtor, Exjay Nine, and Carl are in the pod with him now and in danger as long as they're with Bubo. This way we might be able to turn things around to our advantage. And it's possible that we're heading right to where they're keeping the princess. It's our best chance to rescue her."

Tee growled. "I don't like it. Don't like it at all," he grumbled.

"Well, neither do I," Jimmy answered. "But I don't think we have -"

"Hey, Jimmy, are you there?" Carl's voice asked.

Jimmy remembered to activate the transmitter before answering. "Right here, Carl. What's up?"

"Captain Valtor said that we're approaching the coordinates of where Princess Leama is being held."

Jimmy glanced at the navigation screen and saw nothing. "Really? My screen shows nothing. Are you sure the ship is here?"

Bubo's voice came over the speaker. "This is where the transmission said it would be. It may have moved."

"Maybe it's on the other side of that planet," Cindy suggested, pointing to a small orb in the distance. In the utter blackness of space perspective was almost non-existence and distance was hard to estimate. It might have been a mile away or thousands of miles in the distance.

Jimmy shook his head, the feeling of danger only growing stronger. "That planet isn't on my navigation charts."

"You do have a limited set of charts, Jimmy," responded Exjay Nine. "A lone planet wouldn't be listed on most charts, especially a rogue." There was a pause. That's odd. Our charts don't list it either. That's most curious."

"Guys," Jimmy said, sounding worried, "I don't like this at all. I think we should pull back and get some more information on this while we reconsider our next move."

Captain Valtor did not bother to disguise the disdain in his voice. "A very prudent course of action. Or is 'prudent' the correct word? Perhaps 'cautious' or 'timid' is more accurate?"

Jimmy fought to keep the anger from his own voice. "Call it what you want. I have a bad feeling about his. We need to find out what's going on here before we do anything else!"

"Oh, show some backbone, Nerd-tron," Cindy piped up. "Captain Valtor has more experience with this sort of thing than you do. I vote we go ahead. All in favor?"

"Aye," spoke up Libby.

Voting was a new concept to Captain Valtor, but his response was predictable. "My duty is to Her Highness. I say we proceed. I mean to do so in any case, regardless of what the others may decide."

"I'm in, too" Carl decided. "We may not get another chance."

Captain Valtor sounded pleased. "Well said."

"Actually, I'm with Jimmy on this one," Sheen said. "I mean, what with -" He broke off at a warning look from Jimmy. "I mean, I vote no."

"So do I," Tee said.

"Actually, it didn't really matter how you boys voted," announced Cindy. "We already had a majority who voted to go ahead."

Although he was sure how things would turn out, Jimmy refused to admit defeat. "What about Exjay Nine and Bubo? Don't they get a vote?"

There was a pause as the robots appeared to consider this. "We have a choice in this?" Bubo asked, sounding almost skeptical.

"Of course you have a choice!" Jimmy said. "You're in just as much danger as the rest of us."

After another pause Bubo stated, "I vote we proceed."

"As do I," added Exjay Nine. "I'm sorry, Jimmy, but I do have a duty to the princess as well."

Cindy sounded insufferably smug. "Okay, so that makes it 6 to 3…assuming you boys still want to stay in the minority."

Jimmy seethed but said nothing. If he had been correct about Bubo being a traitor and this being was a trap, Bubo would hardly have voted any other way. Still, he had hoped that at least Exjay Nine would have sided with him. More votes against might have given him grounds to suggest alternatives. He hardly heard Captain Voltron's next words.

"All right, let's decelerate and see if we can pick up the Network ship on the other side of the planet. They may be using the planet's magnetic field to disrupt active scans, so watch for any magnetic anomalies. Wait a chronal…"

Cindy had picked up on the sudden increase in tension in the High Captain's voice. "What's wrong?"

"I can't seem to decelerate. The pod is already caught in the planet's gravity field."

Jimmy immediately tried his own controls and found that the Strato XL was also being dragged forward, even with full reverse thrust. A glance at Cindy and Libby's ship showed that they, too, were being pulled in. A quick review of all instruments confirmed his worst fears. "We're not in a gravity field," he announced. "I'm picking up some kind of artificial energy flux. We're caught in some kind of tractor beam."

"Can we break free?" asked Sheen. "Or are we going to crash into the planet?"

Jimmy pounded the console in frustration. "That beam's way too powerful to fight." He examined a few more readings from the ship's instruments. "And I have some more news. That thing up ahead isn't a planet. It's artificial. It's a space station of some kind." He almost whistled at one reading. "And whatever it is, it's _huge_."

The response to this news was complete silence as the sinister object continued to draw the three tiny vessels towards it. It was Carl who finally spoke up. "Can I change my vote?"

End of Chapter 12


	13. More Than Meets the Eye

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 13:

Jimmy had used the word _huge_ to describe the object pulling them in, but _astronomical_ would have literally been a better adjective. As the travelers neared what they had first assumed was a planet two things became evident. The first was that the features on the surface were much too regular and symmetric to be natural formations. The second was that this was the source of the unseen tractor beam holding them in its grip and consequently their unintended and inevitable destination. Everyone (with the possible exception of Carl who was covering his eyes with his hands once again) stared in awe as the great sphere expanded before them. It grew to dominate their attention, then grew to fill their entire field of view, and then, impossibly, continued to grow. It swelled until its very curvature was lost to them and all could see that what had first seemed to be mountains were actually vast towers, and that what had appeared to be canyons were really enormous trenches.

"Where do you think its taking us?" whispered Cindy.

"I don't know," Libby answered in equally hushed tones. "But I've got a bad feeling about this. You think maybe we should have listened to Jimmy?"

The thought of publicly admitting that Jimmy was right was almost as repellant to Cindy as the numerous possible and equally messy outcomes of their present journey. "I…suppose…he may have…" she began.

This halting admission was interrupted by Libby pointing to something ahead. "Look! What's that?"

Cindy leaned forward trying to make out what Libby had spotted. At first she saw nothing but the myriad points of lights in the shadowed surface before them. As she continued to watch, however, she thought that one of the lights was growing, not brighter but larger. After a few seconds of observing this Cindy decided that she was not mistaken, and further concluded that what she was seeing was the hatchway to some lighted chamber opening before them. As miniscule a feature as it was on this monstrous construct, it dwarfed the tiny ships it swallowed the way a whale does the microscopic krill upon which it feeds. The spacecraft were pulled into a chamber not much smaller than Cindy and Libby's neighborhood and deposited on a smooth surface which, from the faint clanking sound the ship made as it touched down, Cindy deduced was constructed of some type of dark, non-reflective metal. Cindy and Libby gazed around the vast compartment in wonder as the colossal hatch closed silently behind them.

"What is this place?" Cindy whispered. Her voice echoed faintly in the huge chamber, causing her and Libby to instinctively lower their voices.

"I don't know," Libby whispered back.

Both girls were startled by the sound of Carl's frightened voice over the speaker. "Are we there yet?"

"That depends," Libby replied. "Where exactly were we supposed to be going?"

"And is it a good thing if we made it there?" added Cindy doubtfully. Thus far nothing bad had actually befallen them, but she did not like the looks of their surroundings. They few features that she could recognize were sparse and utilitarian, and suggested that whoever had built them lacked any of the more noble aspects of human nature – even assuming that a human had devised this place. She turned as a faint whooshing noise sounded in the chamber and saw that the hatch to the shuttle pod was opening. The first to exit was Bubo, followed by Exjay Nine, Captain Valtor, and finally Carl. Recognizing that it was pointless to remain in their own ship, Cindy and Libby both exited their craft. It was only then that everyone realized that there was no sign of the Strato XL or its occupants. It had been behind the other ships when the tractor beam had seized them and it had not occurred to anyone to look behind them during the stressful incident. The group clustered together.

"Where could they have gone?" Libby wondered aloud.

Cindy sounded annoyed. "And why couldn't they have taken us with them? It would be just like Nerd-tron to abandon us like this just to save his own skin."

"Uh-uh, no way," objected Carl. "Jimmy and Sheen would never do that. We're the Three Amigops."

"I'm with Carl on this one," nodded Libby. "Jimmy wouldn't bail on us like that." She folded her arms defiantly. "And Sheen had better not have, or he can just forget about my ever being his girlfriend, girl friend."

"Perhaps the tractor beam took them somewhere else," suggested Captain Valtor. "Whoever brought us here may have different plans for us and your friends."

Cindy looked dubious. "Such as?"

"All in good time," a soft but deeply resonant voice intoned.

Despite begin surprised by this unexpected voice Captain Valtor reacted with astonishing speed. He dove away from the others and rolled to his feet, bringing a small energy weapon up and firing at the owner of the voice almost before the others knew what he was doing. Captain Valtor's target did not seek to dodge or otherwise avoid the lethal barrage. Instead, the silent but ominous figure simply stood there, his right hand extended palm outwards. The energy bolts from the Felangian's gun appeared to be deflected away, striking the distant walls of the compartment and leaving smoking holes. The outstretched hand gestured slightly and the High Captain's gun appeared to fly into the menacing figure's hand. The hand then closed, crumpling the weapon like so much tin foil.

"Welcome aboard, Captain Valtor," the dark shape said evenly. The twisted mass of metal that been Captain Valtor's concealed sidearm fell to the deck with a dull thud.

"Lord Versile," the captain spat back.

The name meant little to any of the humans, but Cindy felt that she didn't want to know any more. The dark shape, a full head taller than Captain Valtor, exuded menace like frigid air spilling out of an open refrigerator, causing her to shrink back without realizing it. In the back of her mind she wondered what Jimmy would have done had he been here, and if he would have been as frightened as she was. The realization that she was afraid angered her and put her on the offensive. "Just what do you want with us?" she demanded.

"As I said, all in good time," the dark lord answered almost pleasantly. "For now, all I wish is for you to remain here with me. How pleasant your stay is will be entirely up to you."

"Do what you want," Captain Valtor challenged. "You'll never get anything out of us, despite any threats or torture you may use."

"Yeah," Carl agreed, but then looked uneasy. "Now, when you say 'torture', are you talking about no dinner at all, or just vegetables, or maybe no dessert, or -"

"I mean," Valtor answered grimly, "unspeakable physical torment that will leave a man a broken ruin of his former self, both physically and mentally."

Carl considered that. "So, calisthenics and homework, then?"

Lord Versile cut off the High Captain's response. "Rest assured that I have no immediate need of any information from any of you," he announced. "You are here because you were attempting to locate and rescue Her Royal Highness, Princess Leama."

"And I intend to do just that," declared Captain Valtor.

"Indeed. You always were most willful. One might almost say foolhardy."

"And you intend to stop me?"

Lord Versile sounded almost amused. "To the contrary. After all your hard work attempting to find Her Highness, it would be most ungracious of me to deny you the opportunity. You will join her as my personal guests aboard this station."

"Prisoners, you mean," Libby blurted out.

"Call it what you will," the dark lord replied with a slight shrug. "You will be taken to the security holding area to join the princess. I'm sure that Captain Valtor will be most happy to be reunited with many of his old compatriots as well."

Captain Valtor seemed taken aback by that. "The Royal Guard? They're here?"

"Many of them. The ones who were sensible enough accept the obvious and not throw away their lives in a futile gesture of resistance. But make no mistake," Lord Versile went on. "Mercy had no part in this decision. I keep my friends close, and my enemies closer still. In time, they will become useful allies…or be destroyed. That will be your decision and your fate as well - in time."

"Well, you can save yourself some time about me," Cindy said hotly. "There's no way I'm joining you in whatever it is you have planned."

"Nor I," Libby agreed emphatically.

"The princess is my friend," Carl stated, "and I'm not letting her down."

"My duty and choice are equally clear," put in Captain Valtor.

"As are mine," added Exjay Nine.

"And mine," said Bubo.

Lord Versile simply shrugged. "So be it. But I think that you will see things differently soon enough. Now, if you'll accompany me to your quarters?"

"And who's going to make us?" challenged Cindy.

"An excellent question." Lord Versile gestured. As though by magic a score of automata seemed to materialize and converged on the group, all brandishing unfamiliar but lethal-looking weapons. Goddard growled, but took no action.

Cindy assessed the situation uneasily. "An excellent answer."

"Word," Libby weakly agreed.

The drones flanked the group of prisoners and began to shepherd them towards one of the many hatches positioned around the enormous bay. "I would accompany you," Lord Versile apologized as the captives were marched away, "but I regret that I have a number of pressing duties to attend to. I will get back to you as soon as I can."

"No rush," Carl called as the group exited the chamber. "We can wait."

When he was alone in the chamber Lord Versile activated a private communications channel. "Unfortunate news, my master."

"Yes, Lord Versile?" the chairman's voice came back.

"There were several members missing from the party captured by the tractor beam."

The response was terse. "_Who?_"

"The human called Sheen, the reptilian called Tee…and Neutron."

Even over the low-fidelity audio channel Versile heard the low rumble of discontent from the Chairman. "How?"

"I do not know, Master. I was certain the tractor beam was too powerful for any of the ships to escape. Apparently I was mistaken."

Lord Versile could imagine his master frowning. "I warned everyone not to underestimate him. On the loose, there's no telling what he could do. He could ruin everything."

"Yes, my master. But there is more."

"More? What do you mean?"

"Two human females and a cybernetic mechanism not in the original report were with those we captured." Lord Versile's voice turned thoughtful. "Captain Valtor would not have requested assistance from Earth. Only Neutron would have summoned these humans. Now that we have them as well as the princess, I am certain that he will attempt a rescue attempt. With your permission, I will prepare the battle drones to intercept him when he does."

This proposal was greeted by a long silence. "I don't like it, Lord Versile," the chairman finally answered. "He must have realized that we were waiting when we captured the others. He must surely know that we will be waiting for him now. He will be cautious."

"He has no choice, my master. Unless he acts his comrades will be in peril. And it is surely time to test the capabilities of the battle drones."

"Yes," was the chairman's reluctant answer. "You are right. Very well. Deploy the battle drones. But," he added thoughtfully, "be sure that our guests are well guarded. Neutron may still get past, and I don't want any slip-ups if he does."

"Yes, my master. My informant is still in place, but added security would be wise. It will be done." There came a grunt from the other end of the line and then the channel went dead as the link was terminated. The dark lord left to carry out his master's instructions, but paused briefly before leaving the bay. He scrutinized the area as a feeling akin to disquiet passed over him, Then he departed, sure that the feeling was nothing more than frustration in his inability to adequately quantify all necessary factors in his plans.

Elsewhere Cindy, Libby, Carl, Captain Valtor, Exjay Nine, and Bubo were being conducted to one of the immense station's security holding areas, more appropriately described as a detention area or prison. Cindy was still grumbling.

"When I get my hands on Neutron for bailing on us like that…" she was saying.

"Oh, get real, girl," Libby answered. "What was he going to do if he hung around? At least this way he can try to get more help from Earth."

"How much help can he get from Earth?" asked Captain Valtor.

"Well," Carl replied haltingly, "I think that Cindy and Libby were it. But he might be able to find April and ask her for help."

Cindy scowled at the mention of the name. "I wouldn't put it past him."

This piqued Valtor's curiousity. "Who's April? Is she a friend of Jimmy's?"

"Yes," snipped Cindy. "A _very_ good friend."

"Here we go again," sighed Carl.

"Carl's right," said Libby. "Give it a rest, Cindy. There's nothing going on between them and you know it."

"If there isn't, it won't be because Neutron was against it," Cindy replied. "If it were up to him he'd be trust-sealing with her and every other Gorlock girl he could find."

The High Captain simply shook his head. "If this April is on Gorlock I doubt that even your friend Jimmy will get through. The Network effectively isolated the other worlds of the First Alliance before attacking Felangie. I'm very much afraid we're on our own if we wish to escape."

The group came to a halt outside a large hatch that could easily have passed for the door to a vault. One of the guard drones extended a coded appendage and inserted it into a matching slot. "Inside, prisoners," the automaton announced. "You will remain here until Lord Versile wishes to converse with you again."

Ever practical, Carl asked, "Will lunch be served soon?"

Before the guard could answer a commotion at the rear of the group arose. The head of one drone seemed to collapse inward on itself, resulting in the mechanism collapsing on the floor. Another two drones, attempting to evaluate the situation, suddenly swung to face each other and fire their weapons, slagging each other's torsos with their energy beams. The confusion continued to grow as the remaining drones attempted to localize the source of the disturbance and failed to identify any apparent cause for the mechanical mayhem. Valtor, recognizing an opportunity when he saw one, immediately dove for the dropped weapon of one automaton and began firing on the captors. The move was a dangerous one, for it provided the functioning drones with a clear and identifiable target. The drone that had opened the security door swung its weapon to fire on the Felangian, only to have its circuits fried by Goddard's twin lasers. The drone's gun fired once, going far wide of its mark and blowing a hole in one of the station walls before the automaton toppled over.

By now Cindy and Libby had joined the fray and were firing into the remaining crowd of thoroughly disoriented drones with confiscated weapons. The number of functioning machines rapidly dwindled, until finally only two remained. One of these Libby dropped with a well-placed shot to the head. The other took aim at Libby just as she became aware of her danger, and both Cindy and Valtor maneuvered to find a clear shot. Before either could fire, however, the drone suddenly whirled and repeatedly hurled itself first against one wall, and then another. Each impact succeeded in knocking various components of the drone loose, until it finally fell apart completely.

With the destruction of the last guard the erstwhile captives looked about, breathing heavily. "That was a lucky break," ventured Cindy. "What are the odds these mechanical misfits would malfunction like that?"

Libby looked doubtful. "I don't think it was a malfunction."

"You got that right, babe," a familiar voice announced. There was a shimmer in the air and Sheen materialized right in front of Libby, grinning like a Cheshire cat.

Libby screamed and jumped back before recovering from her surprise. "Where did you come from?" she demanded. "And don't _ever_ call me 'babe', boob."

"We never left." The air rippled again and Tee appeared, standing next to the remains of the last drone that had been destroyed. "These cloaking projectors come in handy for squishing drones. That felt good. Real good." He slammed his fist into his palm. "But next time, watch where you're shooting. You almost hit me a couple times."

"Jimmy said to stay low," chided Sheen. "No one ever shoots at the feet."

"Jimmy said?" Cindy echoed. "Is he here, too?" She looked about, half-expecting Jimmy to appear.

"No, he told us to stay with you and find the princess. He had other things to do," Sheen replied. "He said he had to find out what was going on with this station."

"And how was he going to do that?" Libby demanded.

Tee scratched his head. "Not sure. But he said the best way was probably to follow that Lord Versile chump. So I guess that's what he's doing."

Cindy stared at Tee and Sheen, speechless, with here mouth hanging open. "You mean," she finally said, "that he's out there _alone_?"

End of Chapter 13

Author's Notes:

Sorry about the long delay. 'Tis the season, and all that. This was a particularly crucial point in the story and I didn't want to rush it so it took me a couple weeks to get it just the way I wanted. With luck the subsequent chapters will go faster.


	14. Stay Tuned

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 14:

Back in Retroville Judy Neutron stood motionless in the middle of her kitchen, looking very much like someone who was trying to recall something that was just beyond the reach of her memory. It was the third time that evening that she had found herself here, but each time she could not remember why she had come. Dinner was over, the dishes were all cleaned and put away, and the kitchen appeared to be immaculate, but still something seemed not quite right to her. Finally, unable to determine just what was wrong, she headed to the living room where Jimmy's father was busy tending to his extensive duck collection's annual fluff and buff. "Hugh," she said absently, "do you feel that something is wrong?"

Hugh didn't even look up. "Absolutely not, Sugar Booger," he answered. "How could anything ever make you look fat?"

Judy perched on the couch next to him, too preoccupied to have really heard his answer. "I mean, everything seems right, but I still feel that there's something important that I've forgotten."

"That's all right," her husband assured her. "I can't expect you to remember our anniversary every year." He paused briefly to think back. "Especially when you have a genius son who has his own Forget O Blaster."

At the mention of Jimmy his mother looked around the room. "Where is Jimmy, anyway?"

"Oh, he's around here somewhere." Hugh thoughtfully regarded the decoy he had been polishing. "Do you think that I should go for a high polish gloss or a satin matte finish on my Nova Scotia sand dabber?"

Judy looked concerned. "Are you sure he's here?"

"Of course I'm sure." Hugh held the decoy out in front of his wife. "Here he is."

"Not the duck! Our son!"

"Oh. Him." Hugh scratched his chin. "Well…of course. I mean, he was at dinner, wasn't he?"

"Yes…I think so…but…" Judy shook her head in frustration. "I can't be sure. It's like…well…like a memory is all it was." She gave Hugh a worried look. "Do you know what I mean?"

"Absolutely not," he replied. Seeing the annoyed look on his wife's face, Hugh rushed to add, "But I'm sure he's around. He's probably with Carl or that other skinny kid who plays with those dolls."

"Action figures," she answered. "And I've already checked. Their parents said that they hadn't seen Jimmy around, although they were pretty sure that Carl and Sheen were around. _Somewhere_." Judy thought about that. "But if Jimmy isn't with Carl or Sheen, where could he be?"

Hugh reached for the fine-grit buffing paper, deciding that satin matte was the better choice for the duck finish. "Is he across the street with that cute blond girl?"

"With Cindy Vortex? Voluntarily?" Judy stared at Hugh as though he had finally lost what was left of his duck-and-pie-obsessed mind. "What in the world would he be doing over there with her?"

"Well, I'm no psychologist," Hugh replied as he buffed, "but maybe he's realized that the tragic flaw inherent in all his inventions has been a direct result of his overly competitive nature resulting in turn from the superficial hostility arising from the sublimation of his true feelings of deep affection for her. Maybe he's finally realized that his passion for her burns with the white-hot intensity of a thousand suns and he's gone to confess his true and undying love for her."

Hugh and Judy stared at each other for several moments before dissolving into uncontrollable laughter. Finally Judy got the better of her hilarity. "No, really," she gasped, wiping the tears from her eyes. "Where do you -"

"Oh my gosh!" Hugh cried out, setting the decoy aside and fumbling for the television remote control. "It's nearly 9:00 PM! I almost forgot." He activated the TV set and settled back as the screen came to life. "They're airing a new program tonight. It's supposed to be an absolute blast."

Judy's surprise at Hugh's enthusiasm about something other than pie or ducks made her forget about Jimmy. "What is it about?"

"The details were kind of sketchy, but it has to do with the valiant forces of good battling the sinister forces of evil across the cosmos. It's called 'Stellar Conflict'."

"Well, I'm not really into science fiction, but I suppose that could be interesting. Exploring the galaxy, grappling with the fundamental natures of good and evil, wrestling with the concepts of duty, honor, and loyalty -"

"I don't care about that junk," Hugh interrupted. "I just want to see things getting blown up."

At the Candy Bar most of the kids in Jimmy's class had gathered to watch "Stellar Conflict" on Sam's new high-definition big screen television, and the few that hadn't were planted in front of their sets at home. The only one not openly buzzing about the upcoming show was Nick, who was maintaining his typically aloof façade. "So, what's so cool about this show?" he asked of no one in particular.

"Are you kidding?" Amy asked. "It's all about people putting themselves in danger to save the whole galaxy from ultimate evil."

"So not," rebutted Oleander as Nick yawned. "There's going to be these cool spaceships and high-speed chases and space battles and cutting-edge special effects everywhere."

Britney shook her head. "It's about the characters!"

"The action!" objected Billy.

"The heroism!" Nissa insisted.

"The adventure!" the boys yelled.

"The romance!" the girls shouted back.

This set off a round of squabbling among the group, with the boys holding to their view and the girls refusing to surrender theirs. Nick put his hands over his ears to shut out the noise. "All right! All right! I get it!" he called out irritably, causing the tumult to die down. "I'll just watch it and see for myself."

"It's starting!" someone announced in excitement.

Every eye immediately turned to the large screen, accompanied by the inevitable shushing noises from everybody. As the last excited whispers died away the dark screen slowly filled with bright points of light that gradually formed into the shape of a vast spiral shape that filled the screen. As it did so a deep voice intoned, "The Galaxy. For millennia, under the protection of the Galactic Network, peace has reigned. But now, that peace is threatened. Fanatic insurgents, sinister agents of the First Alliance, seek to destroy the very fabric of civilization. It is a dark time…a time of fear and felons…of hope and heroes…it is a time of…STELLAR CONFLICT!"

The screen moved in as background music slowly built to a crescendo, zooming in on one small section of one arm of the galaxy. The view finally slowed to show a massive, lazily rotating sphere. Nick leaned back, crossing his arms and nodding in satisfaction. _This might actually be pretty good_, he thought.

On the vast space station Captain Valor, Libby, Carl, and Tee picked up weapons as Cindy cornered Sheen and pressed him for answers. "Where is he?" she demanded.

"I don't know," Sheen protested. "He just said that he had to get some answers. That's the last I saw of him. Well," he corrected himself, "actually the last I saw of him was when he activated his cloaking device but -"

This response didn't satisfy Cindy. "What information? From whom? Did he say _anything_ about where he was going?"

"No, honest. I have no idea. What's the big deal?"

"Big deal?" Cindy couldn't believe how clueless Sheen could be at time. "Are you kidding? Take a look around you. He's alone on some gigantic space station filled with who knows how many of these things that might be out to get him." Cindy gave one of the defunct battle drones a vicious kick.

"Hey, watch it!" Sheen looked worriedly at Exjay Nine, who was standing by, and then back at Cindy. "That might be his brother or cousin or something."

"There is no need for concern," Exjay Nine replied. "These are simply drones, not droids or robots."

"What's the difference?" asked Carl as he approached with two energy rifles which were, for him, a massive load. "Aren't all robots robots?"

"Drones are simply mechanical constructs," Exjay Nine replied. "They are mere machines. Unlike robots, they are incapable of enhancing or modifying their original programming. They can only do as they are told."

Libby couldn't resist a minor jab to help combat her uneasiness about their situation. "Kind of like Carl?"

"Yeah," Carl nodded in agreement before he caught on. "Hey, wait a minute. I don't -"

"As you were, Guardsman," Captain Valor ordered.

Carl meekly subsided. "Yes, sir."

"Why do we need all these weapons?" Sheen asked. "We can't use more than one of these at a time."

"The rest are for the Royal Guard when we rescue them," Captain Valor replied. "We will need to fight our way back out. As Miss Vortex indicated, we have no idea how many of these machines we may have to fight." He gestured to the corridor beyond the door the head drone had opened just before the battle. "This way. Their cells shouldn't be far away."

While the others prepared to follow Cindy wavered, torn between doing what made sense and somehow finding Jimmy. But how could she find him in a place as vast as this, especially when she had no idea where he had planned to go? As she looked over the others, trying to resolve her dilemma, something occurred to her. "Where's Bubo?" she asked.

The others looked around, suddenly realizing that the small robot was no longer with them. "I don't know," Carl said. "He was with us when the fight started."

"Oh, bad news about that," said Sheen. "Jimmy told us that he thought that Bubo was a traitor and that he's been selling us out from the start."

"I'll squish him good for that," declared Tee.

Exjay Nine found Sheen's accusation difficult to accept. "A traitor? Are you sure?"

"No," admitted Sheen. "But Jimmy was."

That settled it for Cindy. "You guys do what you want. I'm going to find him."

"Why do you want to find Bubo?" asked Carl.

"Not Bubo. Jimmy."

Sheen looked baffled. "But shouldn't we help get the other guys out of prison first and then go find him?"

Cindy grabbed Sheen by the front of his Ultra Lord tee-shirt and dragged his face to mere inches of hers. "If Bubo is really a traitor he'll spill everything he knows, including Jimmy being here. How long do you think he'll last without any help from us?"

"But you don't even know where Jimmy is!" protested Libby. "Sheen is right. We should get some help on our side first. Once we have some reinforcements -"

Cindy vigorously shook her head. "I'm going to find him now."

"How?" Libby persisted.

"You can have Goddard call him," suggested Carl.

Again Cindy shook her head. "That's no good."

"Yeah, Carl," Sheen reproached his friend. "We don't know the area code here."

"No, you corn fritter. The noise might give Jimmy away. We have to find him some other way."

Tee looked stumped. "Then how?"

Carl's mention of Goddard had given Cindy an idea, and she looked down were the mechanical canine was waiting patiently for the group to make up its collective mind. "The same way we found him before. Goddard! Can you find him?"

In response Goddard's chest plate flipped open, showing what seemed to be some sort of tracking display with a large circle, representing the colossal station, displayed on it. A targeting reticule appeared and rapidly moved over the representation of the station, ultimately locking onto a particular spot on the display. The scale of the station rapidly changed to reveal a bright dot in the midst of a bewildering maze of corridors and rooms, along with the message TARGET ACQUIRED.

"Good enough," decided Cindy. "I just need some way to get to him fast."

To her and everyone else's surprise Goddard unfolded into Jimmy's Flycycle and hovered before Cindy, waiting for her to get on. "He never did that without Jimmy telling him to," Libby observed thoughtfully. "Why do you suppose he did that now?"

Cindy moved to mount the vehicle, apparently displeasing Captain Valtor. "We should remain together," he maintained. "We must coordinate our forces if we are to succeed against the Network."

Cindy climbed on, not particularly caring at the moment. "I'll see you later. Go find the princess and the others and we'll meet up with you later. Okay Goddard, let's go!" Obediently Goddard displayed the message AUTOPILOT ENGAGED and sped off, quickly disappearing from view.

Once she was gone Captain Valtor again took charge, albeit somewhat irritably. "All right. Let's move. We've already wasted enough time." Without further dissent the group rapidly proceeded down the passageway, coming before long to a series of heavily armored doors on either side.

"Now what?" asked Libby.

"Leave that to me," was Sheen's confident answer. He swung one of the energy rifles up to his shoulder and took careful aim at the first of the doors. "I'll just blast the door and -"

He was distracted by a coughing noise from Captain Valtor. Sheen lowered the weapon and stared at the High Captain, curious at the interruption. In answer to this silent question the captain held up a small card that he had appropriated from the head battle drone. "I think this might be more discreet."

"Well, yeah," Sheen agreed in a subdued tone as the Felangian inserted the card into a slot at the side of the door, "if you want to do it the easy way."

The door slid up to reveal a small, cheerless chamber in which several Felangians, dressed much like Captain Valtor, were being held captive. At the sight of the High Captain they snapped to attention and saluted smartly in unison. "Hail, Captain Valtor!" they sang out as a man.

The captain returned the salute. "Hail Felangie," he greeted them formally before relaxing somewhat and distributing some of the confiscated weapons. "Are you prepared for battle?"

The apparent leader of the group hefted the weapon handed to him. "We are now," the guardsman returned grimly.

Captain Valtor nodded. "Excellent. We must rescue the princess and any other of the Royal Guard before things get any worse."

A high-pitched, quavering, and extremely annoying wail suddenly began to sound, startling everyone. "I'm not sure," Sheen ventured, "but I think it just got worse."

End of Chapter 13


	15. The Rescuers

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 15:

Captain Valtor recognized the blaring noise as a general alarm and wasted no time in responding. "Guards! Take up defensive positions! Cover the entryway!" he rasped. "The rest of you, get the others out of their cells!" He flipped the acess card to Carl, who juggled it clumsily before finally getting a secure hold on it. "Sir Wheezer, you find the princess. We'll hold them off until you do."

Carl looked uncertain. "Okay, yeah, I can do that…I guess," he answered slowly. "And then what?"

"Just go!" Captain Valtor lifted his weapon and sighted down the barrel, directing his attention in the direction from which he was certain the attack would come.

"What about me?" Tee demanded.

The High Captain turned just long enough to give the reptilian a quick once-over. "Over there," he grunted, gesturing towards one of the walls with his weapon. "Just try to stay out of the way."

"Come on, Carl," Libby urged him. She grabbed the boy by the elbow and began dragging him further down the passageway. "She has to be here somewhere."

For the next few minutes Carl, Sheen, and Libby busied themselves with investigating the remainder of the security corridor. They quickly developed an efficient if somewhat manic routine, with Carl hurrying ahead to unlock the cells, and Sheen and Libby following behind him to distribute weapons to the startled captives and direct them back down the passageway to reinforce the Felangian defenses. With each new hatch he opened Carl hoped to find Princess Leama but found instead only captive members of the Royal Guard who could tell him nothing of her whereabouts. Eventually, as he neared the end of the corridor, he failed to find anyone as cell after cell proved to be empty. As he unsealed the final compartment and peered into the dimness he began to wonder if the princess were located in another security area, or if she were even on this gigantic station at all. He was so absorbed in wondering where she might be that he never saw the hand that grabbed him by the front of his shirt or the foot that vaulted him through the air in an instant to land, dazed and breathless, on the hard deck. In the next instant a knee was planted firmly across the side of his neck, pinning him to the floor and threatening to cut off the supply of blood to his brain.

"Aren't you a little short to be a trooper?" a no-nonsense voice asked.

"Lee! We found you!" Carl heard Libby's voice say.

"Hey, sweet moves!" Sheen commented.

"Libby? Sheen?" The pressure on him was suddenly gone and Carl sat up, rubbing his neck. "Sir Wheezer? Carl?"

There was no mistaking the abruptly soft voice that had spoken his name. "That's me," Carl managed to croak. He got unsteadily to his feet and found himself caught in an unexpected but thoroughly satisfying embrace. The moment seemed to go on forever before the princess released him.

"It's wonderful to see you again," Princess Leama said. "But what are you doing here? Has the First Alliance arrived?"

"Action now, questions later," stated Libby. "We've got to get you out of here."

Sheen dutifully passed Leama a firearm. "Do you know how to use one of these?"

Leama simply twirled the rifle to access the controls, thumbed a switch that deployed the optical macrosights, and brought the weapon up to her shoulder in one smooth motion, handling the firearm as expertly as if it had been an extension of her arm. "I learn fast."

Sheen simply stared at the exhibition. "Right," was all he said.

"I'll say," added Carl as Leama smiled at him.

It was Libby who brought them back to reality. "Yo! Guys! This way!" She dashed back the way they had come, followed closely by Sheen. Princess Leama grabbed Carl by one hand and together they ran down the corridor to rejoin the others. His delight at finding Leama had made Carl almost forget that they were effectively penned in. The renewed noise of the alarm and the sight of the Royal Guard clustered near the opening to the security area keeping a grim watch for any potential threat reminded him that they were far from safe.

"Any sign of enemies?" the princess asked.

Captain Valtor did not turn as he replied. "No. Not yet." Suddenly realizing who had spoken, he turned and immediately placed one forearm across his chest in a salute to his ruler, dropping to one knee and bowing his head as he did so. "Your Highness! My apologies."

Captain Valtor rose to his feet and Leama straightened and carefully disentangled her hand from Carl's. "No need, Captain," she replied formally. "I had feared that you had fallen to the enemy. I'm pleased to find you unharmed."

The High Captain stood stiffly at attention. "And I, you, Your Highness."

Libby, watching this exchange, glanced at Carl and winced inwardly at his happy expression. _Poor Carl_, she thought. _He doesn't know_.

"I'm regret that there's no time for further pleasantries, Your Highness," Captain Valtor went on. "At the moment our situation appears to be most dire. We were unable to contact others of the First Alliance." He swept his arm to indicate the watchful guardsmen. "We few are all that remain to oppose the Network."

Leama's usually reserved manner gave way to astonishment. "All?"

"Well, not exactly," Carl piped up. "There's still Jimmy and Cindy."

"Jimmy? Cindy?" Leama turned her attention back to Carl. "Where are they?"

"No one is sure," Captain Valtor answered before Carl could speak. "The Earth boy went off on his own without my knowledge or consent. The Earth girl went after him despite my protests. It's very possible that they are the ones who set off the alarm. If not for them, we might have been safely away by now."

"Hey, wait a minute!" objected Carl. "Jimmy came all this way to try and help Lee." At Captain Valtor's disapproving look Carl wilted a bit. "I mean, Princess Leama."

The captain was unconvinced. "If he had really wanted to help, he would have stayed and followed orders instead of running out on us like he did and leaving us in this predicament."

"He never ran out on us!" Sheen argued back. "This was all Bubo's fault. Jimmy had nothing to do with it!"

Captain Valtor was too disciplined to actually scoff at this, but his tone carried the same effect. "Then where is he? What is he doing? We don't need allies who won't obey orders, least of all undisciplined children like him!"

"_That's enough!_" The princess had not raised her voice but her tone cut through the din of the alarm like the sharp crack of a bullwhip. She took three measured paces closer to Captain Valtor and with each step the towering figure seemed to shrink before her. "I hardly need remind you, Captain," she continued evenly, "that these children, as you call them, are the reason I am standing before you as the ruler of Felangie today, rather than Minister Khormak. When they had nothing to gain, they were there to assist me. And that is exactly the sort of allies I need."

"That's right," Libby agreed. "Except that, this time, Jimmy came even when practically no one else was willing to help him." With the princess there to hear Libby found it difficult to speak the next words, but felt compelled to. "Even me. Isn't that right, Exjay Nine?" She looked around and was bewildered to find the robot missing. "Where did he go?"

A quick check with the others in the passageway quickly confirmed that Exjay Nine was not there, and that no one recalled seeing the robot go. Sheen was both annoyed and irritated. "How do you like that? I can't sneak three feet down the hallway in school without Miss Fowl catching me, and these robots up and leave any time they want without anyone seeing them. How do you figure that?"

Carl shrugged. "I guess no one pays any attention to them."

Sheen stopped scratching his head in bewilderment to look at Carl. "I'm sorry. Did you say something?"

For the first time Princess Leama looked concerned. "We have to find him," she said. "He has the information we'll need to defeat the Network. Without it…"

Libby held up her hand for silence. "Wait a minute. Hear that?"

Everyone, including the High Captain, stopped to listen. "I don't hear anything," said Carl.

"Exactly. The alarm's stopped." Libby frowned. "Nothing's happened here. So what set it off? And why has it stopped?"

"I don't know," Captain Valtor answered. "But since we aren't the cause we can get out of here while we have the chance."

"But what about Jimmy and Cindy?" worried Carl.

"The knew the risks when they left. My duty is clear. I'm responsible for the safety of the princess. And that means getting her out of here without any further delay or interference."

"We can't just leave them," protested Libby.

"No," agreed Princess Leama, halting Captain Valtor's response. "We must find them. No one gets left behind."

The captain attempted to be reasonable. "Your Highness," he pleaded. "Think about your people and your responsibility. You can't throw it away because of some off-worlders. There is too much at stake for you to risk your safety like this."

"I am fully aware of the stakes," the princess retorted, "even more than yourself. At the very least we must find Exjay Nine if we hope to defeat the Network. But I would not abandon my friends in any case."

"These friends are off-worlders. They don't matter. Only your safety matters!"

Princess Leama sounded as though she were engaging in an argument she had been through many times in the past. "Everyone matters! No one has the right to say that some lives matter and others do not. My father understood that."

These words had a startling effect on the captain. In an instant his stern resolve crumbled, leaving him humbled and silent, unwilling to look the princess in the face. Princess Leama also seemed suddenly broken, her own fire extinguished as completely as that of the captain. For a few moments she struggled to find some words to set things right again, but failed. Libby coughed deferentially. "I guess we should be moving," she suggested tentatively.

"Yes," Captain Valtor answered tonelessly. "We should. Your orders, Your Highness?"

The princess shifted self-consciously. "Prepare a search party," she replied. "We will attempt to find the others. The others should search for some means of transport off this construct when we locate them and are ready to leave." Captain Valtor saluted wordlessly and went to carry out the princess' orders.

Sheen watched him go and gave Leama a bewildered look. "What was that all about?" In response Libby jabbed him in the ribs with her elbow and glared at him. Sheen was not an expert on girls, but he had been around Libby long enough to get the hint. He coughed awkwardly and said, "Hey, Carl, let's go see which group Tee wants to go with."

"But I don't -" Carl began.

Sheen grabbed Carl by the shoulders and began hustling him away. "Yes, sir, I'm always interested in knowing what Tee would want to do. For an ex-villain and former bandit he's really quite a good guy…"

When they were alone Libby moved alongside Princess Leama, who was busying herself with adjusting the carrying straps so that she could sling her weapon. "What was that all about?" asked Libby. "Or is it none of my business?"

Leama's gave her a long and sad look. "I didn't mean it as a rebuke. I shouldn't have brought it up at all."

"Brought what up?"

"My father." Leama stopped the make-work with her firearm and looked down at the floor. "When we first met I told you that I felt that everyone should have the right to change if it pleased them."

"I remember."

"Much of why I feel that was is because my father felt that way as well. He did not wish to be the ruler. He wished instead to serve in the Royal Guard, and to live a simple life with his family as so many others. He read many books from other worlds and learned of ways other than the caste system of our planet. He came to believe that all, regardless of their caste, or station, or even species, had equal value."

"I can relate to that," Libby nodded. "It sounds like you father was a very wise man." Had Jimmy tried to tell everyone something like this, not so long ago? Libby couldn't recall.

"One day, my father went on a trip. My people rarely visited other worlds, but my father desired to learn more of other places. It was on that trip that the ship encountered difficulties. The engines failed, and the ship drifted into a vast asteroid field. The Royal Guard dispatched a rescue team to save the passengers, but my father refused to leave while others were on board. Time and again he ordered his personal guard to shuttle the others back to the rescue craft while he remained on board to assist others. Before he could be rescued himself, the ship was destroyed by one of the asteroids."

Leama remained silent, and Libby could see that she was lost in her own thoughts and memories of the tragedy. She hated to intrude on what she knew to be a very private thing for the princess, but felt that it was important. "And the Royal Guards felt that your father had done the wrong thing? That they had failed in their duty because your father died?"

Leama nodded, tears beginning to fill her eyes. "They are trained from an early age to always protect the royal family. The Royal Guard, to a man, felt that the death of my father was a black mark on the honor of the guard."

Libby thought she understood the conflict between Princess Leama and Captain Valtor. "I guess I can see why Captain Valtor would be so insistent on protecting you," Libby offered.

Leama simply shook her head. "No. No, you do not see. He personally blames himself for the death of my father. Because the chief of my father's personal guard was Captain Valtor."

End of Chapter 15


	16. Unmasked

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 16:

Jimmy moved as swiftly and cautiously as he could, trying his best to keep up with the tall figure that swept down the huge station's corridors without making any noise. Although he was certain – reasonably certain - that his inviso-shield would conceal him from any sensors tuned to the electromagnetic spectrum, he could not be sure what other detection equipment might be monitoring the passageways. Twice before the rubber soles of his sneakers had scuffed across the polished deck of the station, creating a squeak that froze him dead in his tracks and brought his heart to his throat as he waited for the dark shape to turn and confront him. Each time, however, the brooding shape of Lord Versile had continued without a pause towards his intended destination, apparently too absorbed in his solitary thoughts to notice the noise.

If he had a destination, Jimmy silently reminded himself. For all he knew the dark lord had been aware of him from the start and was now leading him into a trap. Alone and unarmed, Jimmy knew that he was taking a dreadful chance with his actions. But he had to know what secret this monstrous station concealed if he were to have any chance of stopping it, and Lord Versile, he was sure, could lead him there. The odds were well against him, but if there were even the slimmest chance of success he was determined to take the risk.

The sudden blare of the alarm paralyzed him and his life flashed before his eyes in the horrible certainty that he had been detected. Mingled with the stark terror that any number of lethal weapons were on the verge of annihilating him was the annoyance that he had never gotten even with Cindy for coating the inner rims of his safety goggles with graphite. He had gone around for the better part of that Saturday like a human raccoon until he noticed the dark circles around his eyes in his reflection in a store window.

When the alarm continued to sound and nothing emerged to vaporize, incinerate, or eviscerate him he slowly relaxed and resumed his observation of Lord Versile. He had also stopped upon hearing the alarm and proceeded to the nearest communications station to determine the source of the disturbance, followed, as closely as he dared to come, by Jimmy. "Report," Lord Versile rumbled.

"A major incursion has been detected in Sector THX-1138," a metallic voice responded. "Subsequent alerts indicate that the intruder is headed towards Sector Alpha-Zero."

The sinister minion's response was immediate. "Have all security proceed to Alpha-Zero and secure the area," he ordered. "Report any developments to me immediately. And bring me the leaders – I want them alive!"

"As you command," the metallic voice replied as Lord Versile terminated the link. For long moments Lord Versile stood motionless as he digested this new piece of information. The coordinate mentioned during the exchange meant nothing to Jimmy, but clearly whatever was happening deeply troubled the cloaked form before him. Jimmy supposed that the reported incursion had something to do his friends rescue of the rescue of the princess, and he fervently hoped that they would complete their mission and get out before the dispatched security forces reached them. Hi mind finally made up, Lord Versile turned from the communications console and, with a great sweep of his black cloak, he resumed his journey with renewed purpose and greater strides with Jimmy following diligently in his wake.

It was fortunate that Jimmy had a photographic memory, as the myriad corridors, passages, and lift stations he encountered would have hopelessly confused anyone without one and left them hopelessly lost. During the seemingly interminable trek Jimmy was mildly puzzled that they encountered no one. Part of that, he supposed, was because all security had been ordered to Sector Alpha-Zero (wherever that was) but he doubted that the order would have affected communications, logistics, and thousands of other support personnel a station of this size should require. What sort of station could possible function without workers to maintain it?

Finally Jimmy did see others. Lord Versile's course took him through a corridor along the sides of which numerous guards were posted. Apparently the order to deploy the station's security forces had not pertained to these people although, from the discomfort they felt as their dark master passed, they no doubt wished that it had. Jimmy redoubled his caution as he moved down this passageway so as not to do anything that might arouse their attention and trusted that the guards' residual disquiet from Lord Versile's passing would allay any suspicions that he might inadvertently raise. To his great relief he passed the last set without incident and managed to scurry through the hatchway at the end of the passage just as the doors closed behind him. Jimmy did not see any obvious means of opening the ponderous doors again but pushed that item to the back of his mind. He was concerned with more important matters.

Lord Versile worked several controls and a large screen before him glowed to life. Jimmy moved around to have a clear view of whoever the dark lord was contacting, but was disappointed to see only a dark silhouette materialize on the screen. "Speak," the shadowy form ordered.

Lord Versile replied, bowed his head subserviently as he did so. "There is grave development, my master. Hostile forces are attempting to access Sector Alpha-Zero."

The silhouette stiffened and the voice became strained. "What forces?"

"I do not know. It may be that the group we captured was merely a diversion."

"It's possible," the shape on the viewscreen conceded. "Could Neutron have signaled them somehow?" When Lord Versile did not answer immediately the voice took on a harder edge. "Well?"

"I do not know," the dark lord replied reluctantly. "Neutron and several companions were not among those we captured."

The voice from the viewscreen blended disbelief with fury. "What? Not there?"

"No, my master. It would seem that he is a coward."

Jimmy caught himself only in time to prevent from objecting out loud to that statement. He swallowed his anger and tried to concentrate on what was being said. Thus far it seemed that the alarm had not been triggered by his friends, and that whoever Lord Versile was speaking to knew who he was, but he was still no closer to learning the purpose of this space station and who was behind it.

"Oh, no." The mysterious figure was shaking his head impatiently. "Not him. Not Neutron. That interfering do-gooder wouldn't flake out like this after going this far. But that's not the point. My whole plan counted on capturing Neutron with the rest. It's meaningless without him." The dark outline moved back and forth across the viewcreen as Lord Versile's master apparently paced back and forth in irritation. "It's not enough for me to control the Network. I want my revenge!"

_Revenge?_ Jimmy wondered. _Do I know this guy?_ As Jimmy pondered this three other viewscreens on the wall before Lord Versile flickered to life, revealing images that Jimmy recognized immediately as the Junkman, King Goobot, and ex-Minister Khormak. He struggled to absorb the implications of this cosmic conspiracy.

"This had better be good," the Junkman grumbled. "I was negotiating a deal with Phlegmwad the Nauseous for a big shipment of vorticycles."

"If he's nauseous, won't the vorticycles make him even sicker?" asked Goobot.

Khormak sighed. "You're thinking of 'nauseated', not 'nauseous', you ignorant eggo-maniac."

"My, but we're being a bit picky, aren't we?" sniped the Junkman.

"I used to have a couple assistants that were sticklers for grammar. Unfortunately, it sort of rubbed off."

"So," the Yokian mused, "'nauseous' actually means -"

The unknown figure slammed a fist against his communications console, causing his shadowy image to blur and shake momentarily. "Will you three cork it and find a dictionary later? We have more serious matters to consider."

"How serious?" Khormak asked.

The malevolent voice became even more sinister. "_Very_ serious. Neutron and some of his dimwitted friends somehow avoided being captured with the others."

The Junkman looked almost bored. "So that threatens our plans…how?"

"Don't tell me that everything we've risked is danger because of one boy and his friends," sneered Khormak.

"I will remind you of one important fact." the silhouette growled. "That one boy and his friends have seriously inconvenienced us all in the past. I wouldn't underestimate them."

"But we have the advantage this time," King Goobot pointed out. "The communications station is functional."

"The First Alliance is effectively cut off from any outside contact," Khormak added.

"And your new stellavision programming is in place," concluded the Junkman, who then chuckled. "I have to admit, I love your idea for 'The Real Survivor'. Imagine a reality endurance show where the only source of food for the contestants is each other."

"Or 'The Greatest Loser'," King Goobot agreed, "where the winner is the only one who doesn't starve to death."

"Personally, I prefer "Galactic Idol"," opined Khormak. "Sacrificing the losing contestants to winner is sheer genius. And I love that caustic, sarcastic judge."

"You are that caustic, sarcastic judge," observed Goobot.

"So I am. Still, it's wonderful premise for a talent show. I think it will easily beat 'Galactic Showdown 2' during sweeps."

Jimmy listened to this exchanged in stunned silence. _This is insane_, was all he could think. _What madman would want to have these sorts of programs? Or _ever_ bring back Meldar Prime's twisted game show?_

"So the water sack is on the loose. We'll get him and the others soon enough," the Junkman concluded. "As long as we're going to be rich -"

"Or 'Filthy rich', in your case," observed King Goobot dryly.

The Junkman's retort was cut off by the mysterious figure. "'Soon enough' isn't good enough," the dark shaped interrupted, seething. "He humiliated me. He made me a laughing stock in front of the entire galaxy. And I intend to pay him back just the same way."

"In the words of a wise philosopher," the Junkman observed, "'Revenge is a dish best served cold…with a side of potatoes and scrambled eggs'." He glanced at the Yokian, who was in turn glaring at the Junkman, and shrugged easily. "No offense to my thin-shelled colleague."

"Yes, forget about Neutron," agreed Khormak. "We're well-prepared for anything he might -'

The images on three of the viewscreens suddenly began to shake violently, accompanied by startled cries and yelps of dismay from all of them. The shaking slowed and finally stopped, leaving all three of the conspirators visibly unnerved and cowed. The silhouette on the main viewscreen resumed speaking. "In case you've forgotten," he addressed King Goobot and the Junkman, "if it hadn't been for me, you two would still be festering in that primeval cesspool that Neutron trapped you in. And you," he continued, turning to Khormak, "would still be rotting away in that cell on Felangie. Just how many sentences did you have to write?"

"All right, all right," grumbled the Junkman. "You've made your point."

"Not quite," the dark shape contradicted, determined to hammer the point home. "I needed your help to get this going. And I will reward each of you for your assistance. But make no mistake. This is _my_ plan. We do things _my_ way. And until such time as you think any or all of you can take me and this station on, I am large and in charge. _Is - that - clear?_"

The others nodded silently. "Clear," they all replied sullenly.

"Good. So your first priority is to get Neutron and his missing friends. Because the one thing I do not want is any surprises."

Jimmy had been edging towards the ext, satisfied that he had seen and heard enough. He was almost to it when, without warning, the huge doors slid apart. The slight noise make Jimmy jump and turn in surprise, hoping that it was not a battle drone or trooper that would bar his way and complicate his departure. What he saw made him wish it had been a battled drone or trooper, or even a whole troop of them. Through the opening drifted the small silver shape of Bubo. Jimmy froze in his tracks, but knew that at this range it would be no good. Lord Versile and the others fixed their attention on the small robot.

"Hello," Bubo chirped. "Congratulations on catching him."

"Catching who?" Lord Versile rumbled, speaking for the rest.

A small beam shot out from the metallic orb, splashing over Jimmy and revealing him in its telltale glow. "Neutron. What? You mean you couldn't detect the energy signature of his refracting energy field? I knew he was out there – I could hear him breathing."

Jimmy bolted for the doorway in a desperate attempt to escape but pulled up just in time to avoid a broken nose when the massive armored hatches slid shut, just inches from his face. Realizing the futility of his situation, Jimmy deactivated him inviso-shield to materialize before the somewhat startled but pleased forms of his enemies. Lord Versile stepped forward, seized him by the back of his collar, and marched the boy to stand before the main viewscreen.

"I stand corrected," the shadowy figure commented in a dangerously silky tone. "This is one surprise I can live with."

"It won't do you any good," Jimmy returned defiantly. "I know all about your plan. My friends and I will stop you just like we did before."

The voice of his captor was filled with mock astonishment. "Oh, _really_?"

Jimmy's voice was no less sarcastic. "Yes, _really_." He shook his head in frustration. "I should have realized it from the start. You're the only one who would be warped ands sadistic enough to try to bring back the kind of shows that Meldar Prime would want on the air."

"Oh, I wouldn't say that," said Goobot, the Junkman, and Khormak in unison.

Jimmy ignored the comments from the gallery and went on. "The only person that would miss Meldar Prime and that sick show of his…the only one that would have it in for the Gorlocks, the Needleheads, and the Brains…the only being sick enough to think of using television to further his evil schemes…is Meldar Prime himself!"

The dark shape menacing Jimmy from the viewscreen touched a button on the panel before him. A light to shone down on him, dispelling the shadows around him and revealing the familiarly sinister smirk of Meldar Prime. "Give our contestant a prize!" he gloated.

End of Chapter 16

Author's Notes:

This should have been posted much earlier but I wanted to see the new Jimmy Neutron episodes before I went on to avoid any possible inconsistencies that might have arisen. Fortunately there don't seem to be any, but there are plenty of sharp readers who have caught some of my gaffes and flubs, so I'll have to wait and see what happens.


	17. A Recipe for Revenge

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 17:

Just as with Jimmy and the others, Cindy had heard the alarm sound and, just like the others, immediately assumed that she was the cause of the alert. Not knowing what else to do, she halted in her pursuit of Jimmy and sought refuge with Goddard in what she hoped was a suitably dark recess in the corridor she was in. When nothing appeared to confront, challenge, or incinerate her she relaxed somewhat and decided to assess the situation more thoroughly.

"Goddard!" she whispered, trying to keep her voice from echoing through the empty passageway despite the noise of the alarm. "Can you scan the area for anything nearby that might be hostile?"

Goddard nodded noiselessly and the tracking display that Cindy had been using to locate Jimmy changed to reveal a myriad of colored dots that seemed to crawl over the screen. At first Cindy could make no sense of their movements, but after watching for several minutes it slowly became apparent that the dots – whatever they were – were organizing into distinct groups and making their way in the same general direction. This worried Cindy. She had no idea whether they were converging on Jimmy or the group she had left, but if they were their sheer numbers would overwhelm any resistance her friends might attempt to put up.

"Goddard, show me where our friends are." Obediently Goddard highlighted two locations on the screen and Cindy noted with relief that the brightly colored specks seemed to be moving off the screen and away from both of them. "Okay," she muttered, "they aren't after anyone I know. So where are they heading?"

Although Cindy had not actually ordered Goddard to show her the intended destination of the moving hordes the obliging canine did so anyway. The scale of the display changed, zooming outward to reveal the circular outline of the station. Cindy noted that the hostile entities were not just migrating from her immediate area, but from all sections of the spacecraft. A flashing reticule appeared to superimpose itself at the exact center of the display.

Cindy shook her head in bewilderment. What could be at the center of this titanic sphere? And why would it suddenly be of such interest to so many of its occupants? "Do you know what those things are after?" she asked.

Goddard, having no shoulders to shrug, did not reply.

Cindy sighed. "Well, do you know how long will it take them to get there?"

This was a question Goddard could answer. After gauging distances and the speed of the moving dots he replaced the tracking display with a timer showing the value "21M 37S".

As the timer continued to count down, Cindy tried to unravel the meaning of the alarm and the apparent destination of the entities Goddard had detected. Her intuition told her that that there was something significant to what she had seen, but gave up when neither her intuition nor intellect led to any meaningful answers. She became aware that the alarm had been silenced and that time was rapidly passing. "Well, they aren't after us or anyone we know, so I guess that's the important thing," she reluctantly concluded. "I guess we should get back to finding Neutron. There's no telling where he's gone or what he's gotten into or how long it will take to catch up with him."

In fact, Cindy and Goddard had nearly caught them up to Jimmy when the alarm had sounded. Had Cindy not stopped she and Goddard would have reached Lord Versile before he had reached the corridor to the private communications center. As it was, Jimmy had already infiltrated the chamber when they arrived at the entrance to the passageway, leaving Cindy with the new problem of getting past the guards posted along the length of the corridor. Cindy was not familiar with all of Goddard's capabilities, but was fairly sure that he would not deliberately harm a living creature and almost certain that he could not defeat them all even if he tried. An attempt to speed past the gauntlet was also out of the question. It was possible that Goddard could transport Cindy past the waiting guards and reach Jimmy before the guards could react, but getting back out again past the alerted sentries was quite another matter.

"Well," Cindy decided, "we can't fight our way through, and we can't sneak past. I guess the only option is to surrender." That statement, brought an apprehensive whine from Goddard, and Cindy gave the mechanical canine a reassuring yet oddly familiar smile. "Trust me," she said. "I got us this far, right?"

Inside the communications room Meldar Prime had discontinued communications with King Goobot, the Junkman, and Khormak was privately savoring his moment of triumph over Jimmy. "You know, Neutron," he said, "it's too bad we had to end up on opposite sides. We're really quite alike, you know."

"I'm nothing like you," Jimmy spat back.

"Oh, I think you are. We're both ambitious, goal-oriented, and, quite frankly, smarter than the average mouth-breathing televiewer, if you get my drift. If it weren't for you persistent and - quite frankly - baffling devotion to scruples, you'd make a pretty good corporate executive. You know," Meldar added thoughtfully, "if you play your cards right, there might be a place in the Network for you."

Jimmy nearly laughed at that. "I'd rather suck vacuum," he sneered.

"Oh, I can arrange that," Meldar replied, unruffled. "In fact, I already have. But it would be such a waste of talent. A good CEO never wastes resources. Uses them, uses them up if need be, but never wastes."

"Well, right now you're wasting your breath," Jimmy maintained obstinately. "I'll never join you or help you in your evil schemes."

Meldar shrugged. "Have it your way. I suppose my colleagues would have been somewhat irked anyway if you had agreed. They were so looking forward to your demise."

Jimmy's stubborn nature refused to let him grovel. "And what exactly did you have planned? Put me in another lame game show called 'You Can't Win'?"

"Oh, much better than that," Meldar assured him with a sinister chuckle. "What I plan is -"

Meldar's explanation was short by the doors to the chamber sliding open to admit two very nervous guards who had been guarding the passage outside. Lord Versile turned to confront the intruders without loosening his grip on Jimmy. "What is the meaning of this intrusion?" he demanded.

"Forgive us, Lord Versile," one of them fumbled. "But we have two captives."

"Captives? From the Sector Alpha-Zero?"

"No, my lord. The captive was taken just outside the entrance to the corridor. They put up little resistance. We were going to take them to the security area for interrogation but thought you might wish to examine them first."

As the two unhappy guards awaited his decision, Lord Versile considered this development. "It may be that their presence here is just a coincidence," he speculated, "but it may well be that they are connected with the intruders we have detected." He gazed thoughtfully down at Jimmy who was just as curious about the situation as the sinister figure who held him in a grip of iron. "Or perhaps others."

"Yes, it does seem a little convenient for some strangers to show up at the same time and place as this nitrogen gulper," Meldar agreed. I think we should take a look at just who else is wandering around."

Lord Versile bowed and turned back to the guards. "Bring them in."

"At once, my lord," the guards stammered, vanishing through the doorway as though teleported. They reappeared almost immediately with the captives between them. Lord Versile studied them with great interest. One appeared to be some sort of automaton, while the other was one of the humanoids he had met earlier in the docking bay. If he had any question as to whether the two humans knew each other Jimmy quickly answered it for him.

"Cindy!" Jimmy exploded. "What are you doing here?"

"Yeah, nice to see you, too," Cindy replied.

Meldar seemed surprised but not displeased. "Well, the loud-mouthed human. Is all of Team Jelly Bag here?" He rubbed his hands in glee. "This just gets better and better."

Cindy, on the other hand, was both surprised and displeased. "Meldar Prime? Are you the one that's behind all this? What's going on?"

"That's what I'd like to know," Jimmy snapped irritably. "What are you doing here?"

"Oh, excuse me," Cindy answered, equally irked. "Most people would be happy that someone was worried enough about them to try and help. But not Jimmy Neutron."

"I never said I needed your help!"

"As I recall, that's not what you were telling us all at the Candy Bar."

"That's not the same thing, Vortex!"

"It is so, and you know it, Neutron!"

"Hey! Hey!" Meldar objected. "Focus on me, people!" The tumult quieted and Meldar nodded in satisfaction. "That's better. You know, with the way you two go at each other I might keep you around for when things get dull."

"Shouldn't we deal with the other intruders, my master?" asked Lord Versile. "If this human escaped the guard drones then the others are surely loose as well."

"What? Oh. Yes." Meldar pondered that before replying. "Dispatch the security drones to find and deal with them. Captured if possible, but eliminated if need be. And be sure it's all recorded."

"The security drones have been dispatched to deal with the intruders in Sector Alpha-Zero," Verisle reminded his master.

Meldar grunted in annoyance. "That's right. So what do we do?"

The dark lord gestured towards the two guards who had, for the most part, been overlooked. "Network security is still available. They could be dispatched."

"Make it so. I want those prisoners found, and fast. The show must go on!"

Lord Versile nodded silently to the two guards, who bowed and hastily exited just before the great doors closed behind them. Jimmy turned his attention back to Meldar Prime. "And just what is that supposed to mean?"

"What is what supposed to mean?"

Cindy was just as curious as Jimmy. "That 'the show must go on' stuff. You sound like you're still running that idiotic game show. What's going on?"

Meldar wagged his head in mock sorrow. "You life forms really are clueless, aren't you? I thought Neutron was supposed to be some sort of genius on your planet. Then again, it took your planet six hundred years -"

"Five!" Jimmy objected.

"Fine, whatever." Meldar rolled his eyes and sighed. "It took your planet five hundred years to figure out the riddle that got you onto _Intergalactic Showdown_. I suppose you really do need some explanation. Without you really knowing what's happening my revenge wouldn't really mean as much."

"Revenge?" Cindy blinked in amazement. "_That's_ what this is all about?"

"Of course, that's what this is all about. Do you realize just what you jelly bags did to me? For centuries _Intergalactic Showdown_ made me king of the spacewaves. I had it all. And then you insignificant excuses for sentient life forms took it all away from me. _From me!_" Cindy shivered from the raw savagery of Meldar's tirade and even Jimmy flinched. Meldar Prime halted, breathing heavily as he attempted to master his fury. "And to top it off," he continued in a calmer tone of voice, "you did it all in front of the entire galaxy on my own show. And so, that's exactly what I plan to do to you. You, and those other species that helped you."

Light was beginning to dawn for Jimmy. "You plan to destroy us on television?"

"Not just destroy you." Meldar touched a button on an unseen console before him. "I plan to have the entire galaxy cheering your destruction. If you'll direct your attention to the monitor on your right, I think you'll find the program most interesting."

Cindy and Jimmy turned to stare at the viewscreen which had flickered to life. One the screen a pitched battle was raging between their friends and a host of opponents. _No_, Jimmy corrected himself. _Not a battle. It's a massacre_. Before his and Cindy's horrified eyes Carl, Sheen, Libby, and Captain Valtor were decimating unarmed opponents even as their helpless victims pleaded for mercy. At length there were no further survivors and the victors surveyed their grim handiwork with satisfaction. Meldar touched another button and the screen went dark, leaving the two young people in a state of shock.

"I think I'm going to be sick," was all Cindy could say.

Jimmy's mind refused to accept what he had seen. "I don't believe it," he muttered. He glared at Meldar's image on the viewscreen. "Our friends would never do anything like that."

"Oh, but they did," Meldar assured them. "Let me show you again." He touched another control and again images played across it, but this time the scene showed a battle between Jimmy and Cindy's friends and armed battle drones. "You've got to love tape delay," Meldar observed as the scene ended. "I think the technicians did an excellent job with the CGI, although not quite as good as your adventures on Mos Slimey. I think your Captain Valtor killed two females and a child when he aided your escape."

Jimmy was so furious he could hardly see straight. "You are…are perverted beyond belief," he stuttered with rage. "To take the truth and twist it for some warped purpose of yours…"

"Hey!" Meldar snapped. "I think it was one of your own species who said, 'You get me the pictures, and I'll supply the war'. You think that those half-chronal sound bites that you call news on your video channels are the truth? Anyone who broadcasts anything has a personal agenda, and shows whatever moves it along. I'm just a little more honest about it. I give the viewers what they want. If I didn't, I'd still be out of business. As it is, _Stellar Conflict_ promises to be the biggest hit the galaxy has ever seen! Even," he added as a final dig, "on Earth."

"So I guess we're supposed to blame the viewing audience for all this?" Cindy jeered.

Meldar looked characteristically smug as he shrugged. "If the lamellar syntha-veil fits…" was all he commented.

It wasn't often that Jimmy found himself at a loss for something to say or do. This was one of those rare times. Finally, trying to gain some time, he spluttered, "You still haven't said how." He looked up, appearing haggard. "We had you beat. We took your matrix generators. There's no way you could have done all this. Not even with the help of those three." He swept his arm about him.

"What three?" Cindy blurted out, but was ignored by both Jimmy and Meldar.

"Oh, you poor, pitifully outmatched jelly-bag," was all Meldar said. "You're right of course. I was beaten. But you missed the whole point. The matrix generators only channeled my power. They weren't the source."

"You created another set," Jimmy concluded.

Meldar smiled and preened, looking particularly odious. "Yes, I did, with some help with a certain disgruntled Felangian minister. And you aren't getting these. It's true that I needed some help at first, so I did some favors for some people who'd been stranded in the past by a certain whippy-haired do-gooder. They were more than happy to return the favor with some loans and technology that I found quite useful."

Jimmy digested this. "So you brought Goobot and the Junkman back from of the past."

"Absolutely. With those matrix generators I can bend space, twist time, warp reality, remember? The were most appreciative. They helped me leverage a buyout of the Network. You don't work someplace for the better part of a millennium without learning a few things about boardroom battles and hostile takeovers. Once I had control the rest was easy. With the matrix generators I could create all the drones I needed to keep the First Alliance bottled up and to run the station you're on, and with control of the network keep anyone from suspecting what was going on."

"Why was it so important to keep anyone from contacting the First Alliance?" Cindy demanded. "If you're so powerful, why should you care?"

"His first set of matrix generators," Jimmy replied. "April still has them on Gorlock. He couldn't run the risk of anyone else using them. They were the only things powerful enough to stop him. It could have ruined everything."

"Bravo," Meldar applauded. Pausing to study Jimmy's desperate face, he added dryly, "Sure you don't want to reconsider working for me?"

"Working for you? You'd let him?" Cindy asked in astonishment.

Meldar smiled easily. "Why not? When you're omnipotent you can afford to be a little generous…especially when you can make every second of someone's life a living torment."

That roused what little defiance remained in Jimmy. "I told you before, you space-happy psychopath," he snarled. "No deal!"

"Speak for yourself, Neutron!" Cindy snapped in response.

"What?" Jimmy asked, stunned.

"What?" Meldar echoed.

"Hey, maybe you don't have the talent or inclination to handle fame and fortune," Cindy went on, "but stand aside for someone who can."

Jimmy just stared. "Like who?"

"Yes, who?" Meldar added, intrigued.

Cindy let out a snort of disgust. "Me, you sock puppets. I can sing, I can dance, I can act…Face it, I've got the whole package."

Meldar looked doubtful. "Well, I don't know…"

"Well, if not me, than how about Goddard?" Cindy reached down and picked up the canine, whispering just loud enough for his sensitive receptors to hear, "Just play along." She handed him to Lord Versile, who released to accept and study the mechanical canine up close.

"Hmm…you might have something there," Meldar admitted. "He was rather resourceful on _Intergalactic Showdown_. Animal shows are always popular."

"Oh, definitely," Cindy gushed, edging slowly away. "And he's well-trained, too." She shot Jimmy a quick look, sending him a silent warning. "He can fetch."

Obediently Goddard extended his neck, snatched up a small handset on the other side of the room in his mouth, retracted again, and dropped the handset in Lord Versile's hand. Meldar shook his head. "Boring," was all he said.

Cindy pretended to think as she and Jimmy moved slightly further away. "Well, he can speak, too," she offered.

"'To be, or not to be. That is the question'," intoned Goddard in a rich bass.

Meldar rubbed his chin. "If he were a real dog that might be worthwhile. As it is, it's still pretty thin."

Cindy sighed. "Well, then, I guess there's his best trick."

"Best trick?" Meldar blinked. "What's that?"

"He can play dead." Without warning Cindy dove to the floor, yelling, "Play dead, Goddard!" Jimmy hit the floor a split second later.

"What?" was all that Lord Versile had time to say. The next instant there was a deafening explosion that rocked the room, shattering the bank of viewscreens lining the wall and sending shards of metal, glass, and plastic across the room and onto the floor. The blast hurled Lord Versile back like a rag doll to strike a bulkhead and crumple to the floor, limp and senseless. A moment later some of the larger fragments of the debris that littered the room moved together, recombining to form the familiar and undamaged form of Goddard. Jimmy and Cindy pulled themselves to their feet somewhat more slowly and staggered painfully towards the door. Neither had any idea how to open it, and Jimmy was in no shape to figure it out. He sensibly took the easy way out.

"Goddard," he croaked. "Laser!"

Twin beams of raw energy streamed from Goddard's photoreceptors to strike the heavy metal barriers. The dark metal glowed red, changing slowly to orange, then yellow, and finally white as it dripped to harden again on the deck. After almost a minute Goddard succeeded in cutting a hole large enough for the three of them to crawl through. Still groggy from the blast, they moved as rapidly as they dared through the opening while taking care not to touch the still glowing edges. Once through Goddard morphed into his Flycycle form and sped off down the abandoned corridor with the still-dazed youngsters aboard.

They had scarcely departed when, inside the ruins of the communications chamber, the crumpled shape of Lord Versile stirred. At first the movements were jerky, almost as though beyond the control of the dark lord, but gradually they steadied and became more purposeful. The great black shape rose to its full imposing height and surveyed the damage, noting particularly the hole cut through the compartment's thick metal doors. Another might have felt fury, or disgust, or some similar emotion at such a setback, but such feelings were alien to Lord Versile.

"Impressive," was all he said, his voice almost a murmur. He nodded to himself, re-evaluating his assessment of his adversaries. "Most impressive." He would not underestimate them again.

End of Chapter 17


	18. Indecision

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 18:

While Jimmy and Cindy were dealing with Lord Versile and Meldar Prime, their friends had been occupied with concerns of their own. Libby, Sheen, and Carl, led by Captain Valtor, had been working their way through the giant station in a search for Jimmy and Libby, while Tee and the Felangian Royal Guard, under the supervision of Princess Leama, were searching for vehicles in which to escape. Captain Valtor's party had not encountered any serious armed resistance, although they had come upon some small parties of drones that they had promptly annihilated. The young humans looked over the smoldering wreckage of their latest adversaries while the high captain considered the situation.

"Man, this is great!" Sheen gloated as he poked the charred chassis of a defunct drone. "This is just like my _Ultra Lord vs. the Mechanicons_ game! I wonder if we'll get the high score?"

Captain Valtor glared about them in bewilderment. "This makes no sense."

"Yeah, tell me about it," snorted Carl. "You think we would have found a new level or some energy power-ups or something by now."

Libby rolled her eyes as she wondered exactly how old boys had to be before they began living in the real world. "Or found a cheat code or something?"

Sheen thought about that. "Well, yeah. Or unlocked some new weapon capabilities or gotten some special abilities like flying or morphing or…"

He stopped when the high captain stared at him, as baffled by the humans' conversation as by recent events. "What are you three gibbering about?"

"Well, you know," Carl tried to explain, "you get so many points for destroying and enemy and when you get so many points or defeat a certain type of enemy you get some kind of bonus to continue the game."

"Reality check, Carl," Libby gently reminded him. "This isn't a game."

Carl looked shamefaced. "Oh. Well, it sure seemed like a game."

That was enough for Captain Valtor. He planted himself in front of Carl and glared at the cringing boy. "A game? _A game?_" The Felangian's inhumanly powerful hands lashed out, seizing Carl by the front of his shirt, lifting him completely off the ground, and shaking him for emphasis. "Has it even _once_ occurred to you that the safety and maybe the _life_ of the _princess herself_ depends upon how seriously _you_ take your responsibilities to her? _Has it?_" Captain Valtor abruptly released Carl, leaving him sprawled on the deck and blinking up in fear and confusion. "Why Princess Leama would even think that some…_humans_…could be of any help to her is beyond my comprehension."

Sheen and Libby stared open-mouthed at this as Captain Valtor attempted to master himself. "O-ka-a-ay," Sheen finally got out. "I guess the captain has some issues with how things are going, even though we seem to be winning so far."

As a soldier long-accustomed to discipline Captain Valtor quickly regained his composure. _These are not members of the Royal Guard_, he reminded himself. _They aren't even Felangians. They don't understand._ "I'm sorry," he apologized in a strained voice. "I forgot myself. You couldn't know."

"Know what?" asked Libby.

Captain Valtor side-stepped the question. "It makes no sense what has been happening since we started our search. On an installation of this size we should easily have encountered a hundred times as many opponents as we have. And the few that we do meet offer only the weakest resistance. It's as though someone wishes us to win. But for what purpose I cannot say. Perhaps there is more going on than we know about. Or perhaps we are being lured into a trap."

Libby thought about that. "So what do you suggest we do?"

"The princess wishes us to find your friends so I will do just that, or die trying. Just be aware that this is not some foolish human game." He turned and stalked off down the passageway as Libby and Sheen helped Carl to his feet.

"Man, what is his problem?" Sheen muttered under his breath to Libby.

"Isn't it obvious?" Libby whispered back. "He's in love with the princess."

"What? Get out!"

"Are boys selectively ignorant or just naturally stupid?" Libby sighed in exasperation. "You saw how she and Captain Valtor acted when they were together."

"What are you talking about?" Sheen protested. "Carl was the one she hugged. She didn't even stand very close to Captain Valtor."

"Carl is her friend," Libby explained. "She feels safe around him. It's all right for her to hug him. But she doesn't dare do that with the captain. It would release feelings and issues that there just isn't time for now."

Sheen turned these thoughts over in his mind, trying to find some shred of logic in what Libby had said. "So," he ventured, "she hugged Carl because she _doesn't_ love him."

"Right," Libby nodded.

"And she _didn't_ hug Captain Valtor because she _does_ love him."

"Now you got it."

Sheen nodded. "Uh-huh. Right. Okay, then. It's all perfectly clear." He took a deep breath before letting out, "Girls are crazy!"

Libby snorted in disgust. "You are hopeless, Sheen," she called back as she hurried to catch up with Captain Valtor. "Absolutely hopeless." Captain Valtor glanced briefly down at Libby as she came alongside him but said nothing. "Nice day," she tried.

"There are no days in space," the high captain pointed out. "Only waking and sleeping periods."

"No, but it sounds better than, 'nice waking period', don't you think?"

Captain Valtor grunted. "I suppose so."

Libby decided to try a different tack. "Listen, I'm sorry if you think that we haven't been taking this seriously. We're just kids, and…well… that's just the way we are. But we do care about Lee – I mean, Princess Leama. We wouldn't have come all this way from Earth if we didn't."

The Felangian considered this. It was true that these humans had traveled light-years to assist the princess in her direst need, based not on duty or obligation but on friendship. Would he have done the same? "That is true. I should have remembered that you are not under obligation to assist Her Highness, as I am."

"Is that all there is to it?"

Captain Valtor stiffened. "What do you mean?"

Libby smiled sympathetically. "I know how you feel about her."

"How could you possibly know how I feel?"

"Let's just say," said Libby slowly, "that I get a lot of practice with a couple of friends of mine. But like I say, I know how you feel about her."

"She is the princess," Valtor answered curtly. "I am sworn to protect her. My personal feelings are…they are not…" Libby simply waited, knowing that sometimes silence was the best incentive. "It would make no difference," the high captain finished bleakly.

"Then there's no reason not to spill," Libby pointed out. "Look, after this is all over we'll probably never see each other again so anything you tell me won't go anywhere that would matter. And even if Lee never knows, wouldn't you at least like _someone_ to know how you really felt?"

Captain Valtor wavered. That fact that he would be unburdening himself to someone not of Felangie helped, as there would be no cultural stigma attached to anything he might say. From a Felangian point of view it was much the way a human would feel about sharing a personal secret with a pet, providing much-needed relief from the emotional pressure without compromising personal privacy. "You are right," he admitted. "I have loved her from the time I first met her. My father was in the Royal Guard, as was his father, and his father's father -"

"Yes, Lee told me about the caste system. Felangians tend to follow the family business."

"Just so." Valtor sighed. "It is not forbidden for one of the high warrior caste to marry into royalty if no suitable candidate is available, but very unusual. But I do not aspire to such honor. My only desire is for her happiness, and I would willingly live or die at her command. Such an oath I have sworn, as have all the Royal Guard, to protect and preserve her and all of the royal family. I failed once before in my duty to do so, and had not the princess herself expressly forbidden it I would have resigned my commission and put a quick end to my disgrace. I will not fail again. Never again. And never her."

Captain Valtor fell silent and Libby knew that he was thinking of his failure to protect the princess' father. "Well, I can promise you this," Libby assured him. "We won't be the reason for anyone failing. We're all in this together, and we're all going to make it through this together. Everyone matters."

"Everyone matters," Captain Valtor repeatedly absently.

About twenty paces behind Captain Valtor and Libby walked Carl and Sheen. Captain Valtor had insisted that they not be grouped too closely together as they traversed the corridors of the station to help initially conceal the size of their party from any opposition they might encounter. Carl's mood of deep dejection seemed beyond Sheen's ability to improve. "C'mon, Carl," he wheedled. "He apologized."

"It's not that," Carl told him miserably.

"Then what?"

Carl sighed deeply. "I just don't think that I should be here. Captain Valtor is right. I mean, I'm not really one of the Royal Guard. I want to help Princess Leama but let's face it. Without Jimmy to help me out like last time, I'm nothing."

"That's not true," said Sheen. "After all, you must have blasted almost two or three of those battle drones we fought." He frowned and squinted, counting on his fingers as he tried to recall the events of the battles. "Well, almost two, anyway." He paused and stared at his fingers. "Maybe."

"Yeah, but you heard what Captain Valtor said," Carl complained bitterly. "It's like they aren't even trying to win."

"So? Is it your fault that they weren't pumped up? That they left their game faces at home? That they didn't come to puh-lay?"

"No, but -"

Sheen laughed and waved it off. "Then what's the big? The next time we run into those machines you'll be psyched for it and ready to tear them apart."

Carl thought about it. "Yeah. Yeah, maybe you're right." He tried to look fierce, but succeeded only in convincing Sheen that he needed to sneeze. "Bring them on! I'll turn them into a recycler's paradise!"

"That's the spirit!" enthused Sheen. "And next time maybe some of them will be shooting back at you."

"Yeah," Carl agreed happily. "That'll show Captain -" The meaning of Sheen's words suddenly sank in and he broke off. "Hey, wait a minute…"

"Sir Wheezer? Mister Estevez?"

The unexpected and somewhat atonal voice from behind startled both Carl and Sheen. Carl gave a scream of fright and whirled about, fumbling to bring his energy rifle up while Sheen simply looked around. As he awkwardly juggled the weapon Sheen recognized the speaker and gave a sigh of relief. "Relax, Carl," he said, patting his friend on the back. "It's that robot guy we met before, Double-Youdee Forty."

"Exjay Nine, sir," the robot corrected him.

"Yeah, whatever," Sheen responded indifferently. "So, where've you been? We wondered where you'd gotten to."

"That's quite a long story, sir," Exjay Nine replied. "For now, I suggest we locate the others and depart as soon as possible."

Captain Valtor had been alert enough to notice that Carl and Sheen and stopped following him and had turned back to see what was happening. Upon spotting the robot he frowned and raised his weapon. "Where have you been?" he demanded, looking suspicous. "How did you find us?"

"As I informed Sir Wheezer and Mr. Estevez, Captain," Exjay Nine explained patiently, "it's a little too involved to go into at this time. But I recommend that we retire from the scene without delay."

Libby shook her head. "We can't. We've got to find Cindy and Jimmy."

"They are not with the others?" The voice carried a tone of what could almost be termed surprise.

"Nope," Sheen answered. "Jimmy went off to find out something, Cindy and Goddard went after Jimmy…"

"No surprise there," Libby commented.

"…and now we're after Cindy and Jimmy and Goddard," Sheen concluded. "The princess insisted."

The robot nodded. "Yes. It would like her to do so. But this is not good. I had not anticipated this development."

Carl looked puzzled, although the others did not seem much more enlightened than he was. "What do you mean?"

"We must locate them and leave without delay. In a few minutes the station's entire security force will be mobilized to locate and destroy us all." Exjay Nine ambled over to a panel on a bulkhead and began manipulating controls.

Captain Valtor's suspicions were immediately aroused. "What are you doing?" he snapped.

The robot's answer was terse but far from satisfactory. "Attempting to locate Mr. Neutron and Miss Vortex. I believe that I can tie into the station's communications channels and provide a beacon for their Goddard unit to follow to rejoin us."

Captain Valtor leveled his weapon directly on Exjay Nine's cranial unit and the robot halted in mid-motion in response. "You seem to know a great deal about this place and what's happening in it," the high captain said. "Well enough to disappear and reappear when it suits your purpose. For all we know you're as much a traitor as that other robot was supposed to be. For all we know you're trying to alert the security on this station to our whereabouts."

The robot's voice was even and unperturbed, devoid of any emotion, as its photoreceptors stared impassively into the muzzle of the energized weapon. "I assure you, Captain Valtor, that my intentions are purely honorable. It is only a matter of time before security locates our friends unless we can direct them here without delay. I must signal them."

Captain Valtor's face was expressionless as his finger moved to the trigger of the rifle. "Not until I know for certain who you're working for. Even try to touch those controls and I'll turn you into slag."

Exjay Nine considered the situation for several seconds, an amount of time that would have equalled millennia of processor time. "I understand sir. You must make a decision. And so must I." Its finger slowly moved towards a button on the panel even as Captain Valtor's finger moved to tighten on the trigger. "I only hope, sir, that you are as equally sure of your decision."

End of Chapter 18


	19. Gathering Time

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 19:

Although Jimmy had intended for Goddard's Flycycle mode to carry one passenger, in an emergency the versatile canine was able to accommodate both Cindy and Jimmy. Doing so required Cindy to sit side-saddle in front of Jimmy, with her arms around his neck and his holding the Flycycle's handlebars on either side of her. In other circumstances they might have enjoyed the ride more and possibly even admitted it to themselves or each other, but presently their primary concern was getting as far away from Lord Versile, Bubo, and anyone else allied with Meldar Prime. A second, but equally vital, concern was to locate their friends and vacate the station as quickly as possible.

"Will you watch what you're doing, Neutron?" Cindy snapped as the Flycycle nearly collided with the far bulkhead when it rounded a corner at high speed. "I'd like to reach wherever we're going in one piece." Jimmy didn't respond, which in itself didn't surprise Cindy. She had long grown accustomed to him ignoring her, but the odd expression on his face kept her from following up with another sharp comment. Her irritation changing to concern, she asked more softly, "Are you all right?"

In point of fact Jimmy was not doing all right. Hitting the floor a fraction of a second after Cindy had exposed him to more of the effects of the confined explosion, leaving him in half-stunned and almost totally deafened from the sudden overpressure in the communications chamber. A steadily worsening ringing in his ears made it impossible for him to concentrate, and it was nearly all he could do to stay upright and maneuver the Flycycle. He had no clear idea where he was going, was only vaguely aware of what was happening, and was perilously close to going into shock without even realizing it.

Cindy had no serious medical training to speak of aside from first aid sessions in the Campfire Girls coupled with her instincts told her that something was very wrong. She grabbed the handlebars and swerved into a side passage, hollering for Goddard to decelerate as she did so. The Flycycle slowed and came to a stop, with Jimmy falling over to one side just as the craft settled to the ground. Only Cindy's arms around him prevented him from pitching face-forward onto the deck and possibly suffering a concussion. As gently as she could she lowered him to a sitting position with him leaning against her. She would have propped him against on of the walls, but Jimmy had started to shake uncontrollably and she was worried about the harm he might do himself against a hard surface.

"Got to get away," Jimmy kept muttering, almost too weakly for Cindy to hear. "Can't stay here. No time."

Not knowing what else to do, Cindy pulled him closer to her, rubbing his back and arms to calm his shaking. "Just hold on, Neutron," she told him softly. "It'll be all right. Just hold on."

Elsewhere Princess Leama, Tee, and most of the Felangian Royal Guard had found their way to what seemed to be a large hanger filled with small one-man scooters that bore a passing resemblance to Jimmy's Flycycle. Tee immediately recognized the craft and straddled one experimentally to assess the fit and survey the controls. "Feels good," he pronounced. "Should be all we need once the others get here."

Princess Leama sighed. "I wish there were some way to contact the others."

"Don't sweat it," Tee assured her. "They'll find their way here. Jimmy's smart. Real smart. He'll find a way." He dismounted and unshouldered his firearm. "For now, we need to post a guard in case anyone else finds their way here."

The sound of several engines starting up interrupted the princess' reply. Looking in the direction of the noise, she saw that a number of the guard had activated the scooters. "What are you doing?" she demanded. "We should conserve energy until it's time to leave."

Three of the guard marched up to her, looking both apologetic and stern. "I'm afraid that it is time to leave, Your Highness," one told her. "We must get you safely away while we can."

Leama shook her head. "Not without the others, Lieutenant Grikmar."

The officer who had spoken looked almost ashamed. "I regret to say that the others are expendable, Your Highness," he replied apologetically. "I have my orders from Captain Valtor that you are to be removed from this station at the earliest opportunity…and this is it."

The princess straightened to her full regal height, and somehow the tall Felangian before her, almost twice her size, seemed to dwindle. To Tee it seemed as though he were watching a mother dealing with one of her full-grown children who had displeased her. "And if I choose not to go? What then?"

The lieutenant dug his toe against the hard metal deck, embarrassed but determined to carry out his duty. "Captain Valtor has ordered me…us…to use whatever means necessary to…remove you." His voice took on a pleading tone. "I beg you, Your Highness. I have my duty."

"As do I, Lieutenant," Leama replied. "Whether we stay or go, we do so together." The voice, which had thus far been firm, became adamantine. "_All_ of us."

The lieutenant glanced at the guards on either side, drew a deep breath, and stepped forward resolutely. The princess countered by stepping back and adopting what was clearly a defensive stance. At the same time Tee stepped between her and the guard, growling menacingly. "You heard the lady, fool," he rasped. "Back off."

The other guards circled around to flank Tee and Lieutenant Grikmar frowned ominously. "This is not your concern, off-worlder. Stand clear."

Tee dropped his rifle and doubled up his fists. "Just try something, chump," he challenged. "Try something and I'll beat you bad. Beat you like a dog, do you hear? You're gonna wish you didn't never leave that cell you were in!"

The three guards halted at the reminder that Tee and the other missing members had rescued them from captivity. "We have our duty to perform, but wish you no harm," the lieutenant said at last, attempting to defuse the situation. "We owe you a great debt for assisting Her Highness and us. We would take no pleasure in battling a single warrior."

"He would not fight alone," the princess corrected him. She assumed a more aggressive pose. "You have your duty, but there is a greater duty here…more than to myself, more than to Felangie, perhaps even more than to the Alliance. My decision is to wait. Now you have your decision to make…to wait, or to fight. Now, choose!"

The three guards considered the situation, weighing sworn duty against unspoken debt. Finally Lieutenant Grikmar turned to the mounted guards and nodded. At his gesture the guards shut down their scooters. "We will wait," the lieutenant announced, as silence again fell over the compartment, "for ten chronals. If the others are not here by then, we leave, with or without Your Highness' consent."

The princess said nothing. Tee had traveled enough to know how long a Felangian chronal was. In Earth terms, Jimmy and the others had about twelve minutes.

At that moment Jimmy and Cindy were lost in one of the innumerable passageways that riddled the station. Although Jimmy's hearing was still impaired, the ringing in his ears had begun to subside and his shaking had finally stopped. Despite the improvement in Jimmy's condition Cindy's arms were still around him and Jimmy had, at some point, reciprocated. His condition had precluded the embrace being the result of any conscious motive, arising instead from the more fundamental need for human comfort. Cindy did not try to rationalize it in any way whatsoever. She only knew that it was eminently satisfying and didn't want it to end. She also knew, however, that time was passing…time that they didn't have. She pulled just far enough away to look into Jimmy's tired eyes.

"Feeling better?" she asked gently.

Jimmy looked puzzled. "What?" he answered in a voice much louder than he normally used.

The high volume of Jimmy's voice made his problem immediately clear to Cindy. "I said, 'Feeling better'?" she returned just as loudly.

"Feeding batter?" Jimmy replied, bewildered.

"Feeling better!" Cindy yelled at the top of her voice.

"Oh. Good. I'm glad." Jimmy shook his head and dug into an ear with one finger. "I'm not doing so good, myself. My hearing isn't working too well."

Cindy sighed. "Do tell," she sighed.

Jimmy's face clouded over. "It's been almost two days since I've had a bath. You'd smell, too."

Cindy gave up, and then had an idea. "Goddard!" she called. "Do you have a TTY mode?" Goddard, who had reverted to his normal canine form, barked an affirmative. "Good. I need you to display what I say so that Jimmy can read it."

Goddard obligingly flipped open the cover to his main display screen and waited for Cindy to say something. Jimmy eyed Goddard quizzically. "What's going on?" he asked.

"Goddard will be displaying whatever I say," Cindy explained, as the words appeared on Goddard's screen.

Jimmy's face brightened as he caught on to Cindy's idea. "Not bad," he admitted. "So what's the sitch?"

"I was going to ask you. You said we had to get out. That there wasn't time."

Jimmy frowned. "Yes. We have to get away. We need to let everyone who's watching those doctored broadcasts know that it's a trick of Meldar's."

"How?"

"Goddard records everything, remember? If I can patch his playback circuits into this station's transmission channels it will broadcast Meldar's whole confession to everyone who's watching." He looked around speculatively. "If I only knew where to hook into the circuits…"

Cindy looked thoughtful. "I doubt that the local inhabitants would know, or even tell us if they did."

Her words struck Jimmy like a thunderbolt. "Omigosh! I almost forgot!" He scrambled to his feet and over to Goddard. "Goddard! Display all entities within sensor range!" Instantly Goddard's tracking display displayed the myriad of dots that Cindy had observed earlier, but this time the direction was away from the center of the station. Jimmy noticed nervously that a number of the dots were rapidly converging on their location. "We're going to have some company."

Cindy moved next to Jimmy to watch. "It looks like their coffee break or whatever was keeping them occupied is over," she commented. Goddard swung around to let Jimmy ready Cindy's remarks on the viewscreen.

"And a lot of them are headed this way," Jimmy added. "We'd better get out of here before they arrive. Goddard! Flycycle mode!"

The two mounted the vehicle and Cindy settled against Jimmy, feeling curiously light-hearted. Despite the dire circumstances things didn't seem so hopeless now that Jimmy was feeling better. The greatest part of hopelessness, she knew, was not knowing what to do. As desperate as his plan to unmask Meldar was, it was nevertheless something on which they could concentrate and gave them a purpose. "Where are we headed?" Cindy yelled, deprived of Goddard's assistance in communicating with Jimmy.

Fortunately Jimmy's hearing was slowly improving. "I wish I knew," he hollered back. "I think our best bet is to locate Carl, Sheen, and Libby. I don't suppose they'd found any radios before you left them?"Cindy shook her head and Jimmy sighed. "I didn't think so." He glanced down at the tracking screen and took a passage that would keep them away from the swarming dots for a little while longer.

"Could you turn us invisible?" Cindy shouted. "Like you were before?"

"Yes," Jimmy answered just as loudly. "But since Bubo was able to spot me I don't know how effective my cloaking device is anymore. But that's not really the issue. We have to find the others, and since we and they could be anywhere, I doubt -"

Cindy waited for Jimmy to finish his sentence before hollering impatiently, "Yes? Go on."

Jimmy pointed at the screen. "Take a look."

Cindy looked at where he was pointing and saw a large blinking dot on the tracking screen. "What's that?"

"It looks like a beacon of some kind."

"Friendly?" Cindy eyed the doubt suspiciously. "Or is it a trap?"

"Don't know." Jimmy considered it. "Whatever it is, the odds of it being on Goddard's tracking frequency without someone being familiar with Goddard's specifications are pretty slim."

Cindy was still not convinced. "But who around here would know how to broadcast a signal inside this station to you? Except for Bubo, and you saw that he can't be trusted."

Jimmy surveyed the tracking display, considering factors and evaluating options. He finally made a choice. "I'm going to chance it," he decided. "If we don't try for it now we're going to be cut off anyway."

"I hope you're right," Cindy said loudly. "From the looks of those dots they aren't going to be too far behind when we do reach that beacon, so we won't have a second chance if you're wrong."

At the source of the signal Captain Valtor slowly lowered his weapon as Exjay Nine turned to face him. "Thank you, Captain," the robot said. "I appreciate your indulgence. I certainly hope that our friends are able to receive this signal."

Captain Valtor said nothing. His reason, his logic, his training –his very duty as the high captain and a member of the Royal Guard - had told him that he should have destroyed the robot before it had a chance to possibly signal their location to the enemy and potentially endanger the princess. For better or worse his chance was gone now. Destroying the robot would serve no purpose now except to vent the anger and shame he felt in himself. Even if Exjay Nine had spoken the truth, and the signal did lead their missing friends to them, the damage was already done. He had failed in his duty, and utterly disgraced himself. He had been right, he knew now, to have ordered Lieutenant Grikmar to escort the princess from the station at the earliest opportunity without waiting for him or the others to return. Any return now would be to his own dishonor.

"I hear something coming," Libby spoke up suddenly. She pointed down a long corridor. "That way."

Valtor raised his weapon again. Part of him hoped that it would be more of the battle drones, enough to overwhelm any defense that he and his allies could put up. An end in battle would not erase his disgrace, but would at least give him an honorable death. He sighted down the weapons barrel in the direction of the growing noise and prepared to fire at the first clear shot at the unknown intruder. He became aware that the robot was standing next to him.

"I hope that you will hold your fire until whoever is approaching is identified," Exjay Nine told him. "It may well be our friends."

Captain Valtor simply grunted, his finger gently caressing the trigger in anticipation. The others also took places and readied their own weapons, squinting into the distance for a clear view. A small speck emerged from a side passage and headed towards them, and as it drew nearer its shape gradually formed into that of a small flying craft bearing two passengers. It was Sheen who made the first positive identification. He dropped his rifle and waved his arms exuberantly.

"Hey! Jimmy! Cindy! Welcome back!" he called out.

"So, where you been, girl?" Libby added to Cindy.

Carl heaved a sigh of relief. "No fighting," he said happily. "I guess we got lucky."

"Yes." Captain Valtor gritted his teeth irritably, his complex jaw working in frustration at this turn of events that sealed his fate. "Very lucky."

End of Chapter 19


	20. Partings

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 20:

Any exuberance at the reunion of Jimmy and Cindy with the Libby, Sheen, Carl, and Captain Valtor was short-lived. "We've got to move," Cindy told the others urgently. "We just got away from Lord Versile and there's a crowd of his forces close behind us."

"How close?" Libby asked.

Cindy's immediate answer was lost in the unmistakable metallic whine of an energy ray that whizzed passed the group, turning a section of the corridor wall into a molten puddle of metal and plastic. "About that close!" Cindy yelped, pointing down the corridor at a distant yet steadily approaching cadre of battle drones.

Valtor lost no time in returning fire, supported by Libby, Sheen, and Carl. Their shots, taken at extreme range, succeeded in scoring some hits on and disabling several of their adversaries but did little to slow the advance of the mechanical troops. As Goddard's tracking screen had indicated the approaching horde was considerable and for every drone dispatched another hundred seemed ready to take its place. Cindy tugged at Valtor's sleeve. "There are too many!" she yelled over the din of the battle. "We've got to get away!"

Valtor jerked his arm away in irritation. "We have to buy time for the princess to escape!" he shouted back. "We stand here!" _Or fall here_, he added to himself.

The high captain's stunned Cindy. "What are you saying?"

"I left orders that the other guards were to get Princess Leama off this station," Valtor replied between carefully-selected shots. "By now the others are safely away."

Cindy shook her head, refusing to accept it. "Lee would never do that!" she objected. "She's fought too long and too hard to abandon her friends like that."

"She's a Felangian," the Captain Valtor countered. "She'll follow her duty. Now get back and let me do mine!"

Jimmy, in the meantime, had been conversing with Exjay Nine with Goddard's assistance. "Did you send out that signal?" he asked.

"Yes, sir," the robot answered. "I was able to tap into the station's internal communications network to set up a directional transmission that was tuned specifically to Goddard's personal scanning frequencies."

"How did you know how to do that?"

"When we were programming your spacecraft with the navigation charts, I had the opportunity to access some of Goddard's specifications to better familiarize myself with Earth technology."

"No, no," Jimmy said, somewhat impatiently. "I mean, how did you know how to access the internal communications grid?"

The robot's answer sounded oddly reluctantly. "I must confess that I have some knowledge of the workings of this station," Exajy Nine admitted.

A light suddenly dawned on Jimmy. "That information you had to take to the First Alliance!" he exclaimed. "It was about this station?"

"Yes, Jimmy. I regret that I could not tell you. Deceit is not part of my fundamental programming. But I am carrying the complete technical specifications of this construct. Although the princess did not tell me that I could access the data, it came in useful for misdirecting her enemies."

Everything was now clear to Jimmy. "It was you who sent all those battle drones to Sector Alpha Zero. That's why Cindy and the others weren't bothered."

The robot nodded, a habit he had learned from his long association with organic lifeforms. "My analysis of the plans showed that sector to be the most sensitive part of this entire station and I was able to slip away unnoticed to exploit that particular piece of information. A simulated emergency in that area overrode all other priorities of the security forces on this station. I regret that the deception could not be maintained for long."

"And you say you have the complete technical specifications of this station?" Jimmy asked.

"Yes, sir. Did you have something in mind?"

Jimmy mind was considering the possibilities. "Actually, yes. Can to interface with Goddard and let me take a look at those plans on his viewscreen?"

The ongoing battle, scarcely noticed by Jimmy, had continued to rage. "I think we're winning!" Libby called out in excitement. "They're stopping!"

The opposing battle forces had indeed stopped their advance, but Captain Valtor did not accept Libby's assessment of the situation. The fierceness of the defenders' resistance had been enough, he grudgingly admitted, to slow the advance of the battle drones but hardly enough to stop it entirely. His training and instincts told him that the delay was to serve an entirely different purpose. The drones, he decided, were holding their ground to wait. But for what?

"Hey!" Sheen said. "Who's that?"

The others peered through the drifting smoke of battle, straining to make out through the smoke of battle the figure Sheen had indicated. Carl, whose eyes were used to making out blurry shapes, answered first. "Isn't it that guy we saw when we first got here?"

Cindy, who had so recently been in the malevolent warlord's presence, shrank back instinctively. That anyone could have recovered so quickly from or even survived Goddard's main core blast seemed inconceivable. "It can't be!"

Valtor confirmed Carl's assessment. "Lord Versile," he hissed softly. "So he wishes to be here for the kill." He raised his weapon as the battle drones resumed their march, making minute adjustments to the telescopic macrosights to target on the distant figure. "So be it." The shot was a long one, even for him, but the reticule slowly came to rest on the dark shape. Heedless of the enemy fire that raged about him Valtor slowly tightened his finger on the trigger, taking care not to disturb the position of the crosshairs painstaking centered on the evil target in his sights. As he did so it seemed to him that his quarry was looking directly at him, completely aware of what he was doing.

And then the image was gone, lost in blur of gray. At the same time the noise of battle subsided. With a Felangian oath he looked up to see that a wall of some thick metal had appeared between him and the enemy forces. "Everyone! This way!" he heard the one named Neutron call. "The blast door won't hold them for long."

Cindy, Libby, Sheen, and Carl immediately followed after Jimmy, Exjay Nine, and Goddard, but Valtor stood motionless for long moments, staring uselessly at the barrier that had cheated him of his perceived chance at redemption. At last he turned away and started down the corridor, hurrying in a half-hearted to catch up with the others.

"Where did that wall come from Jimmy?" panted Carl.

"What?" asked Jimmy. "You'll have to speak up."

"He asked where that wall came from," shouted Libby.

"Exjay Nine activated it," Jimmy explained. "This station has a lot of them, located through these corridors to isolate and protect against potential hazards, like explosions, fires and plasma discharges."

"And battle drones," yelled Sheen.

Jimmy nodded "Right. Them, too."

"So where to now?" Cindy called out.

"If the others are trying to get out of this station the hanger bays are their best choice," Jimmy hollered back. "According to the schematics of this station, this path should lead us to them."

"It sure has a lot of twists and turns," Libby observed. "Is this the fastest way there?"

"No," admitted Jimmy. "But we should reach a juncture that will allow us to block off any pursuers from following us and give us time get out. And there are a couple things that I have to do on the way."

"Such as?" Cindy yelled.

"Well, I have to broadcast Meldar's little speech about doctoring those broadcasts of us," Jimmy explained.

"Oh. Right." Cindy nodded at the reminder.

"Meldar?" Libby asked. "Meldar Prime? From that _Intergalactic Showdown_ game show we were on? I thought that he was doing infomercials now."

"That's the one," Cindy agreed grimly. "But he's moved up. Apparently he runs the Network now. He's been recording everything we've been doing and using computers to make us look like the bad guys on some stupid television show."

"Oh, man! This is awesome!" Sheen rejoiced. "I knew my work as the Monkey King in cinema would pay off some day!"

"Sheen, Meldar is making us look like the villains!" Libby pointed out.

Libby's announcement did nothing to dampen Sheen's spirits. "Hey, there is no such thing as bad publicity in show business." He sighed. "Do you think we'll ever actually be on television some day?"

"Oh, right," scoffed Cindy. "Like someone would actually want to watch episodes of five kids from Retroville on television. Even computers couldn't make a show like that fly."

"What's the other thing you have to do, Jimmy?" Carl. "Does it have anything to do with bathrooms? Because I -"

"Oh, right," Jimmy interrupted Carl. "I have to disable any sensor and tracking systems this station might have. Otherwise they'd spot us, snag us, and drag us right back in as soon as we got out."

Captain Valtor, who had caught up with the group and was now bringing up the rear, was jolted by Jimmy's statement. Sensors? Tractor beams? Moons of Heskallae Prime, he was an idiot! He had been so occupied with getting the princess out of the station that he had completely overlooked the practical logistics of doing so successfully. Perhaps he had been unfair in judging the off-worlders so quickly. Perhaps, he reluctantly conceded to himself, the princess had been right in believing that other worlds and other ideas had things of value to offer. Perhaps.

After several long minutes Jimmy slowed and began carefully scrutinizing the panels along the walls of the corridor. "I think this one is it," he told Exjay Nine, indicating one of the many consoles.

The robot appeared to consider it. "Yes, sir," Exjay Nine said, the volume raised to accommodate Jimmy's still-impaired hearing. "Goddard should be able to access the necessary systems and download the recordings in his storage unit into the broadcast channels. You should also be able to override the tractor and sensor systems for this section of the station from here."

"Just this section?"

The robot's booming voice sounded sincerely apologetic. "I'm sorry, Jimmy, but I regret that any more extensive interventions would require an incursion much deeper inside the station. But you should be able to create a fairly substantial blind spot on this side of the station."

"I guess that will have to do," Jimmy decided with a shrug. "Unless any of you want to go back." The others made noises of quick assent. "I thought so. All right, this shouldn't take too long. Goddard, be sure to activate the blast doors to seal this section off. The rest of you, keep an eye out for any drones that might show up before then. We're not out of this yet."

The others deployed to strategic observation points while Jimmy, Goddard, and Exjay Nine got to work. Exjay Nine served primarily to confirm Jimmy's assessment of the function of the circuits he was modifying and report on Goddard's status. Much sooner than Jimmy anticipated, however, he was startled by the sound of blaster fire. "We've got company!" he heard Libby yell.

Jimmy half-turned from his unfinished circuit modifications to spot perhaps a dozen battle drones advancing towards them. Among the metallic shapes he was surprised and extremely vexed to see the small figure of Bubo flitting about. Undoubtedly the small robot had interfaced with the stations systems to identify their most likely destination and lead the detachment of battle drones here. "Stop the intruders!" the familiar and now-detested voice shrilled to the drones.

"Goddard!" Jimmy shouted. "Priority directive! Activate the blast door for Corridor Lambda Rho 573!"

The shouted order was a mistake, as the battle drones heard Jimmy's shouted command as well as had Goddard. As Jimmy's dog moved to comply, the lead drone's slightly more sophisticated computational unit evaluated the situation and determined that preventing the closure of the blast door was the main priority. He swung his weapon to target the mechanical canine even as Goddard began sending the complex series of signals to activate the door mechanisms. Jimmy spotted the lethal firearm as it trained on Goddard and leaped forward as time seemed to slow to a crawl, knowing even as he did so that he would not be in time. "Goddard!" he cried.

Fast as Jimmy's leap had been the drone leader was faster, firing his weapon. Even faster, to Jimmy's amazement, was Exjay Nine. Jimmy was flung bodily aside as the robot stepped forward between the drone and Goddard, shoving Jimmy back out of the line of fire. Two of the blasts meant to incinerate the dog perforated Exjay Nine's lower torso. The rest thudded harmlessly against armored metal as the activated blast door slammed down between the detachment of battle drones and their intended quarry. Seconds later the remaining blast doors moved into place, effectively isolating the area from any further surprise attacks. Jimmy hurried to Exjay Nine and inspected the damage while the others crowded around. Two carbon-scored holes gaped in the robot's outer casing.

"Are you all right?" Jimmy asked.

Exjay Nine gingerly took a couple steps, just the way a human might to assess his physical condition. "I am still functional," the robot replied, "although my system diagnostics indicate that I am not fully up to factory specifications." Apparently realizing that the response sounded a little too mechanical, Exjay Nine amended, "I am fine. Please continue with the modifications. I do not believe that there is much time left."

Jimmy and Goddard returned to their respective stations while Carl, Sheen, Libby and Captain Valtor returned to points of observation. Cindy remained with Exjay Nine. "Are you sure you're all right?" she asked. "I mean, you look hurt pretty bad. I'm kind of worried."

Exjay Nine looked about, as if searching to find something that was missing. "Very few have ever been worried about the welfare of a robot. Thank you for your concern. It is…gratifying." Although Cindy felt reassured by the answer something about it bothered her. It was only later that she realized that Exjay Nine had not really given her an answer.

"Done!" Jimmy announced some minutes later. "We should be able to get away now."

"Unless the others have already gotten away," Cindy commented, as if to herself.

Jimmy had not heard Cindy's remark. "Goddard, set the video image for continuous loop and lock the channel so it can't be overridden for a while. We need to make sure that everyone has a chance to know what they've been seeing."

Goddard barked an acknowledgement and the group proceeded in the direction of the hanger bays, this time with Captain Valtor leading the way and with Jimmy and Exjay Nine bringing up the rear. With the realization that the princess would be placed in extreme danger until and unless the tractor beam and sensor arrays were deactivated he was vitally concerned that the guards had followed his orders and taken Princess Leama to an unwitting demise. The time when they were to have left had long passed, but an unreasoning hope that something had delayed the departure remained within him.

At a junction Jimmy stopped and pointed down one corridor. "That way leads to the other hanger bays. This way," he continued, pointing in the opposite direction, "leads to the docking bay where the Strato XL, the Fire Drill, and the shuttle pod are...I hope. I'm going to the Strato. I guess Exjay Nine can handle the shuttle pod. Which way do the rest of you want to go?"

"I guess I'll take the Fire Drill," proposed Cindy. "What about you Libs?"

Libby considered it. "Well, I think I'd like to have something of my own to fly, if I can. I guess I'll head to the hanger bay."

Sheen threw his arm around Libby's shoulders. "And I'm with my Ultra Lady."

Libby shrugged off Sheen's half-embrace. "Don't ever say or do that when I'm holding an energy weapon, Sheen," she warned him, trying to ignore his playful grin.

Carl thought it over. "Well, the shuttle pod has a bathroom," he finally said, "but I guess I should go with Captain Valtor."

"My path is to the princess," Valtor answered.

"Okay," said Jimmy. "Then Goddard, Cindy, Exjay Nine, and I will head to the docking bay. We'll see you soon."

An agreement to rendezvous outside the station was made and the two groups went their separate ways. As they moved along Cindy became aware that Exjay Nine was moving more slowly and with apparent difficulty. Jimmy noticed also and stopped to check into the situation. "Are you all right?" he asked.

Exjay Nine did not reply. Although still fully alert the robot was aware that many of his systems were reporting conflicting or blatantly nonsensical information. Deprived of the essential data needed to function reliably, Exjay Nine found himself unable to control his motor systems. The robot stumbled several paces, and then, his stability systems failing, found himself falling against a bulkhead and slumping to the deck. Both Jimmy and Cindy rushed to his assistance.

"Godddard! Full scan!" Jimmy ordered. Twin beams glowed from Goddards photoreceptors and moved over Exjay Nine while information began scrolling down his main viewscreen. Jimmy was not familiar with the alien technology that made up the robot, but the data feeding from Goddard's scan was clearly not good. Jimmy gazed up at Cindy, looking stricken. "I didn't think it was this bad," was all he could say.

"What is it?" Cindy whispered, feeling like a visitor in a hospital.

Jimmy couldn't hear Cindy's quiet words but could guess what she had asked. "His systems are highly interconnected. In Goddard a localized wound like this wouldn't be that serious. But in Exjay Nine I'm seeing a mass of cascade failures. All his subsystems are going off-line. It's advancing to his central cognitive net." He drew a shaky breath. "He's dying."

"Dying? But he's a…I mean, can't you fix him?" Cindy eyed Exjay Nine who, aside from the obvious damage, appeared to be resting peacefully. "You must be able to repair him."

"This is completely alien technology. I wouldn't even know where to begin, even if I were in my lab." He sounded uncharacteristically lost. "I don't even have any tools to try."

Jimmy's words filled Cindy with deep sorrow, the source of which she couldn't begin to identify or explain. She had only met the robot a couple times, and as human as Exjay Nine acted it was still just a machine, wasn't it? Machines were supposed to serve people. And machines broke down all the time, didn't they? This was just a machine breaking down. Just a machine.

But machines didn't try to help people, as Exjay Nine had always done.

"Jimmy," a voice said loudly.

Cindy and Jimmy both looked at Exjay Nine, who had not moved. "I'm here," Jimmy answered. "What can I do?"

The speech synthesis was slower, making the voice sound serene. "System failure imminent. Before then …two last tasks."

"What are they?" asked Cindy.

A small hatch opened in the robot's chest opened, revealing an internal compartment. A small slot in the compartment ejected a disk. "Here is the data…princess…gave me. Please…take it…for me. Trust you."

Jimmy solemnly removed the disk. "I will."

"Other task…must know…" Many of the systems on Goddard's screen now read FAILURE. "Final…answer."

"Final answer?" Jimmy was confused. "Final answer to what?"

"First…Creator."

"First creator? You mean your manufacturer?" Jimmy thought he understood. "You're saying that they can fix you?"

There was a small noise as several relays closed within the robot, bringing energy reserves on line. The voice strengthened somewhat. "No. Not my…manufacturer. I have a maker…as do…organics. The First Creator…is before."

Cindy and Jimmy looked at each other as meaning of the robots words became clear. Cindy tried to fathom it. "Is he…is he asking about God?" She shook her head in disbelief. "Can robots do that?"

"I don't know. Apparently. But why ask me?"

The question had not been directed to Exjay Nine but the robot answered anyway. "Because…of what…you gave me. Identity…beyond…function. Purpose beyond…programming. Everyone…matters."

Jimmy remembered his words. "Yes. Everyone matters."

"Even…me?"

Jimmy sounded puzzled. "Yes."

Exjay Nine said nothing, but seemed to be waiting for something. Something inside Cindy suddenly understood exactly what Exjay Nine was asking. "Well? Answer him, Neutron."

Jimmy spread his hands. "Answer what? I don't know the question!"

"Didn't you hear what he said? Identity beyond function. Purpose beyond programming." Cindy tried to put it in terms that would make sense. "He's more than just a bunch of parts. He's developed a higher sense of purpose and now he's dying. He wants to know whether anything of him will still be around when this part of him ceases to exist. If there's a First Creator that made part of Exjay Nine, and if he matters, then that part of him will still exist."

"And how am I supposed to answer?"

"You're supposed to be the genius, not me."

Jimmy thought about it. He was a scientist. How could he prove something that required a leap of faith to believe? Something he had heard somewhere came to him. "Exjay Nine?"

"Yes." The voice was growing faint, but Jimmy could hear it.

"Sometimes the answer is just being able to ask the question."

The robot didn't answer and Jimmy thought that his reply had been too late. A glance at Goddard's viewscreen showed the single line PRIMARY COGNITIVE NET ACTIVE in green and he waited, wondering what to do. As he wondered Exjay Nine's voice came one last time. "Thank you…my…friends." Then the viewscreen changed to read PRIMARY COGNITIVE NET FAILURE in red. The message blinked twice and then Goddard's screen went blank.

Jimmy straightened up, rubbing his eyes hard. "I wonder if he found his answer," he said.

"I think so," Cindy answered, wiping her own eyes, "because he wasn't just a machine."

"How do you know?"

Cindy was unusually quiet for what (from Jimmy's viewpoint) was some time. "Because," she answered at last, "I felt him go."

End of Chapter 20

Author's Notes:

While this wasn't meant to be a metaphysical story I felt that I had to put this chapter in. As Exjay Nine pointed out the drones were only capable of following their programming, whereas robots had the capacity to go beyond their programming. Do such robots have souls in the sense that some part of them is immortal or eternal? For that matter, do animals? One view is that anything that ultimately derives from immortality is itself immortal, such as the soul and intelligence. As with so many other things, I'll have to leave the reader to decide for himself or herself.


	21. Skin Deep

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 21:

Tee wiped the blood from his nose with the back of his hand and paused to catch his breath before speaking. "Is that all you got?" he said, shaking his fist at the Felangian guard lying on the deck before him. "Hmm? Hmm? How many more of you fools I gotta beat before you get the message? The princess says we wait, we wait."

The guard Tee had most recently knocked down dragged himself to his feet, leaving three others lying unconscious on the deck where they had fallen in hand to hand combat. The other guards milled around uncertainly. Had Princess Leama chosen to go their course of action would have been clear and their sheer numbers would have quickly overwhelmed the determined reptilian. As it was she was standing back to back with Tee and preventing any sneak attacks from behind and was responsible for knocking out one of the attackers. Lieutenant Grikmar scowled, frustrated by the situation. Energy weapons were out of the question, as a shot might accidentally strike the princess, and to rush her and the defiant offworlder _en masse_ went against every code of honor combat. Single combat seemed the only recourse, but though each of the Felangian Royal Guard were larger than Tee his determination and street brawling style had thus far frustrated any attempts to secure the princess.

"Please, Your Highness," he said in another attempt to persuade her to acquiesce. "Consider your duty."

"My duty," Princess Leama returned primly, "is to keep faith with my friends. I will not abandon them here."

"What she said," Tee puffed through swollen lips. He was in much worse condition than the slim princess behind him. The guards had tried only to subdue rather than actually fight Leama, but had had no such compunctions with him and the effects of their efforts were plainly evident. "Nobody gets left behind, you hear that?"

"I have my orders," the lieutenant said. "You have my gratitude for all you have done, and I personally wish you no harm, but my duty is clear and I must carry it out. It is our way. It is who we are."

"It is who we were," Leama countered. "There are better ways. My father understood that, and it is my intention to see his wishes fulfilled."

Reluctantly Lieutenant Grikmar stepped forward and prepared to engage Tee. Tee, he knew, was only acting in an honorable (if somewhat unsophisticated) manner to protect the princess, and both he and every guard there understood and respected that. Tee had also helped to rescue them and the princess and to do battle went against the Felangian's sense of honor. But precious time was passing and as distasteful to him as the prospect seemed battle with reptilian seemed the only recourse.

Tee straightened at the lieutenant's approach and doubled his fists. "So you want some of this?" he panted. "Well, bring it on chump. But you better make it good, because you're only gonna have one chance."

Grikmar said nothing, concentrating instead on his fighting technique. He had carefully studied Tee's style in the previous melees, noting his adversaries weaknesses to exploit while identifying his own strengths to utilize. He was a seasoned veteran who took nothing for granted and never underestimated his opponents, and as he closed in he looked exactly like what he was: a member of the Felangian Royal Guard and a thoroughly dangerous opponent.

He feinted with an attack using one hand, attempting to open Tee's guard, and followed through with a disabling punch with the other hand when Tee fell for the diversion. Tee managed to recover in time to block the punch and countered with a powerful blow of his own. His speed was impressive but the blow never landed. Grikmar had learned just how fast Tee could be and moved out of reach in time to avoid being hit. "Impressive," he admitted aloud. "Most impressive." The other guards murmured agreement with the lieutenant's opinion. Adversary or not, each guard could and did respect the skills of a warrior.

"You ain't seen nothing yet," Tee shot back in defiance.

"Be careful, Tee," Leama cautioned. "He's dangerous." She warily eyed several guards, who were circling them and waiting for an opportunity. "We have to stick together."

"I ain't going nowhere," Tee assured her. He blocked one attack and barely managed to deflect another, delivered by Grikmar with nearly surgical precision. Despite Tee's bravado he was not as confident and he tried to sound. The guards who had previously attacked him had attempted to use their larger size in crude attempts to overpower him, but Lieutenant Grikmar fought almost as though he were playing a game of chess, thinking three or four moves ahead. The reptilian was also nearly exhausted, while the Felangian was fresh, and both knew that, sooner or later, Tee would make the mistake that would end the fight.

It happened sooner. Grikmar pivoted, bringing one foot around in a high kick at Tee's torso. Unable to duck beneath it, Tee made the mistake of grabbing rather than simply blocking the leg in an attempt to throw Grikmar off-balance. Grikmar, however, dropped to the deck and swept Tee's legs from beneath him using his other leg . As Tee tumbled to the ground Grikmar yelled, "Now!"

The guards who had been circling leapt simultaneously for the princess, who now found herself open in all directions. She drove back one attacker as two others seized her from the sides and another grabbed her from behind. The guards lifted her completely off the floor, and deprived of any leverage, she struggled in a desperate attempt to extricate herself from their iron grip.

Grikmar rolled clear of Tee and onto his feet in one smooth motion. "To your vehicles. Prepare to depart," he ordered.

"No!" Leama shouted. "You can't do this!"

Tee staggered to his feet, more winded than hurt. "You heard her, chumps. Put her down."

Several Felangians moved between Tee and the guards holding the princess, their weapons at the ready. "Stay out of it, off worlder," one warned.

"You threatening me, fool?" Tee shook his head and groped for his own weapon. "You point that gun then you better be ready to use it. If you want me out of it, you're gonna have to put me down." It was the wrong thing to say to the duty-conscious guards. They raised their weapons in unison and prepared to fire. "Okay, maybe I rephrase that," Tee conceded.

"Stop!" the princess cried.

"Stand down!" a deeper voice called out, almost at the same time. Heads swiveled to see the source of this order, but the guards menacing Tee kept their firearms trained on him. Captain Valtor, who had just entered the hanger, scowled. "I said, 'Stand down!'" he repeated as he strode forward with Sheen, Libby, and Carl in his wake. "I won't repeat that order again."

The guards who were confronting Tee lowered their weapons, and those holding Princess Leama released her. Lieutenant Grikmar saluted. "Captain Valtor! My apologies, sir. We were delayed from our departure by the off-worlder. I accept full responsibility for failing to carry out your orders."

"My orders were ill-advised," Valtor returned crisply. "I neglected to consider the stations sensor and tractor systems. Had you departed per my orders you could all have been destroyed or recaptured. We owe the off-worlder a debt of gratitude."

Libby frowned as a buzz of wonder arose among the guards. "His name is Tee."

"Quite so," Valtor nodded. "We owe Tee a debt of gratitude."

"But the sensors? And the tractor beams? How are we to evade them?" a guard asked.

"One of the…Neutron believes he has disabled them. He could only affect part of the system so we must still exercise great caution, but it is a chance."

Leama looked about her in puzzlement. "Where is Jimmy?"

"He and the others are taking their own vessels. They will meet with us outside." He looked over the guards. "Everyone select a wingman and maintain battle formation until we are clear of the station." He paused to let his announcement sink in. "Be aware that this could still be our most perilous hour."

Sheen immediately put his arm around Libby's waist and pulled her close. "I call Libby-licious!"

Libby rolled her eyes. "Sheen…"

"Yeah, I know." He sighed and disengaged. "Energy weapons. Got it."

"No." She leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. "Just be careful out there, okay?"

The others quickly paired off. The high captain, as was his duty, would act as personal guard for Princess Leama. As a honorary but novice member of the Royal Guard Carl was teamed with Sergeant Mauk, a battle hardened veteran, and placed in the ring of defenders that would also safeguard the princess. Tee and his wingman, one of the Royal Guard, were placed in the perimeter of the formation with the other experienced warriors. Before heading to his designated scooter Tee met with Sheen, Carl, and Libby. "I wish that Jimmy was here," he said, his voice filled with regret.

Libby patted his back reassuringly. "We'll meet up with them outside. You can talk with him then."

"No." Tee shook his head. "Just talking won't do it." He abruptly grabbed everyone in a massive group hug. "I love you fools!"

"Yeah, got it," gasped Sheen.

"Still remember from last time," wheezed Carl.

"Don't need to remind us," Libby panted.

Tee released them and hurried to take his place and the others mounted their scooters. Sheen studied the controls of his craft with undisguised delight. "Cool!" he exulted. "This is exactly like the ultra-bike in Ultra Lord Episode 184." He pressed a button and suddenly found himself hovering several feet off the floor, upside-down. "Okay, maybe it isn't exactly like the ultra-bike," he corrected.

Libby reached over and punched another control, flipping Sheen right side up again. "Sheen, quit fooling around. This is serious."

Sheen nodded vigorously. "Got it."

The group quickly fell into the predetermined battle formation and Captain Valtor looked over the assembly. It wasn't a large group, and he wondered how many would, or could, actually survive a battle with a determined opponent. _We've gotten this far_, he told himself, _with the help of children from another world. Only a fool could hope to make it any further_. He paused and considered it.

"Something?" Princess Leama asked.

Valtor gave her an odd smile. Leama could scarcely remember ever seeing him smile, but remembered clearly that it was a handsome smile. "I was wondering if there was any truth to the human saying."

This answered nothing. "Saying? What saying?  
Valtor faced ahead and prepared to depart, feeling curiously untroubled. "That fortune favors fools…small children…and drunken men." He signaled the group to proceed. "It certainly has so far."

In one of the station's innumerable corridors Lord Versile impassively surveyed the remains of the robot slumped against the wall. "The others escaped?"

"Yes," Bubo replied. The time it had taken to breach the blast door had given the others ample opportunity to leave. "It was typical of organics to abandon a mechanical. They would never have left one of their own behind."

Versile rumbled his displeasure. "It was the Chairman's wish that the humans be here for the end."

"We tried. If Exjay Nine had not been assisting the organics things would have gone according to plan." The high-pitched voice sounded almost petulant. "This was all their fault."

The dark lord was not listening. He studied the open compartment in the robot's torso and considered it. "A data disk was removed from this unit. It had to be something of great value for the humans to want to remove it."

Bubo considered this. "True."

"What was on it?"

Bubo bobbed up and down in a pantomime of shrugging non-existent shoulders. "I don't know."

The tinted lenses in the mask fixed on the small sphere. "There is a way to find out. Perform a deep memory deconstruction on the inactive unit."

"But…" Bubo's logic circuits nearly experienced metastability as the implications of the order were processed. "But a deep memory deconstruction would preclude returning Exjay Nine to functionality."

"Regrettable, but necessary." Lord Versile turned away in dismissal of further discussion. "Have the findings to me as soon as you have them."

The small robot was not willing to give up. "But you said…you promised…only the organics would suffer. You promised that Exjay Nine would not be damaged!"

Lord Versile turned back, his hand raised, palm outward, in a silent warning. "I will know what was on that disk," he said. "See to it."

"We had a bargain!"

The hand closed into a fist and Bubo shook as forces the robot's sensors could not detect seized it. Strain gages reported dangerously high readings as the unseen power threatened to crush the small robot into a compacted mass of metal. "I am _altering_ the bargain." The crushing force suddenly disappeared as Lord Versile waved his hand in final dismissal of the matter. "Pray I don't alter it any further." The sinister figure then swung around and strode away, leaving Bubo to run a number of diagnostics to ensure that his systems were still intact and functional.

When he was certain that none of his systems had been damaged Bubo reluctantly turned to his assigned task. The effects of deep memory deconstruction to a robot were almost the same as that of a lobotomy to a human. The deconstruction retrieved information from the non-volatile storage of a system by literally disassembling the fundamental storage components of the memory and analyzing the energy patterns contained within them. In doing so, however, the subject was irreversibly damaged. Although the raw data was retrieved intact, the billions of complex interconnections between them that made up the unique personality, or robotic "soul" were destroyed. Even if the other systems in Exjay Nine were restored, the robotic mind that had once been his would be lost forever, leaving him little better than a simple drone. Bubo understood this all too well and rebelled at the very thought of doing it to a fellow mechanical, especially one with whom he had been closely associated for so long.

But he had no choice. Lord Versile had made that clear to him. Disobedience would mean Bubo's inevitable termination, the cessation of all input and purposeful functioning. Self-preservation had been and still was his highest priority. Three times he tried to begin the deconstruction process and three times halted just prior to actually initiating it. Despite his clear mandate a contradictory subprocess that Bubo could not qualify appeared to be interfering with his primary task. An attempt to identify the source proved fruitless and he paused to analyze the situation.

His processing net only returned the result that he did not wish for the discontinuation of Exjay Nine. Following the deep memory deconstruction all that Exjay Nine had been would be gone forever, a result that Bubo already knew. What he did not know was why this prospect was important enough to imperil his continued existence. Friendship to Bubo was at best a vague intellectual concept. The concept of missing someone was completely beyond his grasp. He knew only that he wanted Exjay Nine to remain.

Caught between the opposing motivations – his own survival and that of Exjay Nine – Bubo formulated a course of action. Before peforming the memory deconstruction, he would download as much of Exjay Nine's files as he could and carefully store them in his own memory system. In that way a piece of the Exjay Nine would be preserved and make the robot's final termination, if not fully acceptable, at least bearable. Bubo interfaced with Exjay Nine's mnemonic network and began transferring whatever files he could locate and access, scanning the data and marking it for retention or deletion as he went. He had not proceeded very far when an audio clip in the local input cache brought his file transfer to an abrupt halt.

_"Well, no matter. Let's get your robots and - Where's the other one?"_

_"Other one? I don't know. Did he leave the saloon with us?"_

_"I don't know. I should have been paying more attention."_

_ "That's bad. Real bad. There are scavengers all over this rock looking for little 'bots like that. The spare part shops and scrap yards are full of what's left of them."_

_"We have to find him. If anything happens to him…"_

_"No time. I thought you were in a hurry."_

_"Not that much of a hurry. No one gets left behind."_

_"But he's just a mechanical. No one risks themselves for a mechanical."_

_ "There's no just _anything_ in this group. He's Exjay Nine's friend…and Exjay Nine is mine."_

_"And mine."_

_"Yeah, mine too."_

_"And like you said, friends stick together. It doesn't matter if they're metal constructs or carbon-based life forms. They're people. They matter. Everyone matters."_

_"Thank you, Jimmy."_

Bubo analyzed the clip, and then, disputing the conclusion of his analysis, ran it a second time, and then a third. The voices were that of Jimmy, Carl, Sheen, Tee, and Exjay Nine, unquestionably recorded on Mos Slimey and concerned with Bubo's absence. But while Tee was decidedly in favor of abandoning him rather than risk his own safety Jimmy was just as determined to help him. It was illogical. As Tee had said, no organic risked themselves for a mechanical.

Bubo continued with the file transfer, still attempting to fathom the puzzling meaning of the audio fragment. Near the end of the cache another memory block snared his attention. This one was even less comprehensible to Bubo and he wondered if the contents had been corrupted during transfer. In the file a drone was firing at the Neutron human's primitive Goddard unit. But the human sought to protect the Goddard in spite of his own safety…and Exjay Nine had pushed the human out of harm's way while protecting the Goddard unit himself.

Unable to accept the contents of the file as valid, Bubo recalled his own log of the incident. At the time he had been too occupied with stopping the intruders to fully evaluate the situation, but had automatically recorded and stored complete details of the incident in his streaming log files. Careful analysis showed that Exjay Nine's records were correct. Jimmy had tried to protect Goddard. Exjay Nine had tried to protect Jimmy. It made no sense.

An organic protecting a mechanical.

A mechanical protecting an organic.

It was illogical.

Illogical.

Illogical…

End of Chapter 21


	22. We Interrupt This Program

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 22:

Outside the immense station Jimmy sought to find and rendezvous with the others. "Now what?" asked Cindy, raising her voice so that Jimmy could hear her.

"I'm working on it!" Jimmy snapped.

Cindy scowled in reply. "I was just asking."

Jimmy sighed, knowing that he was in the wrong. "I'm sorry," he apologized. "I know that wasn't a dig. I haven't slept in over a day...and…I miss Exjay Nine." He activated his tracker and studied it. "If the others are anywhere in a parsec weI should be able to find them. Then we can regroup and…and then…" He stopped, completely stumped. What would they do next? What _could_ they do? The Strato's communications equipment showed that the station's transmitters were broadcasting Meldar's recorded duplicity, but other than that there was little they could do against the colossal monstrosity from which they had just escaped. "I don't know," Jimmy admitted. "Do you have any suggestions?"

"Just one."

"Oh?" It took Jimmy's sleep-deprived brain a few seconds to process Cindy's answer. "What's that?"

Cindy pointed behind them. "Run!"

Jimmy swiveled to see what she was pointing at. At first he saw nothing, but then noted what Cindy's sharp eyes had spotted. Behind them were myriad tiny flecks of light, moving against the bright starfield. Without being asked Goddard unfolded into his binoscope mode, giving Jimmy a magnified view of the approaching objects and causing him to gulp. As Cindy had already realized or suspected the objects were hundreds of pursuers, two man scooters manned by the battle drones they had already encountered inside the station. Flickers of crimson winked from the front of the scooters and even at this range Jimmy recognized it as blaster fire.

"I think you're right," Jimmy called as he gunned his rocket's motors. "Let's get out of here!"

Cindy was already ahead of him but her vessel had not been built for speed. Jimmy caught up easily and pulled alongside. "I thought you disabled their sensors," Cindy yelled in irritation over the noise of her straining engine.

"I did!" Jimmy shouted back. "They must have had sentries patrolling around the station. I should have realized that." _Another mistake_, he silently reproached himself. _First Exjay Nine, and now this_. What to do? _What to do?_

Cindy glanced backwards. The hostile scooters, essentially weapon platforms on rocket pods, were fast and slowly drawing closer. "Do you think Libby and the others know about these guys?"

"I don't know," Jimmy answered, "but I'm going to make sure they find out. Goddard! Start recording this. Override the recorded loop and feed the transmission into the broadcast channel!" If the others were in vehicles with any sort of communications equipment they should pick up the broadcast and take appropriate action…whatever that was. Under the circumstances running away would be the best course. He was so lost in his thoughts that he almost missed what Cindy said.

"Did you put any weapons on this thing?" Cindy was asking.

Jimmy shook his head. "Sorry. I didn't think you'd be going into battle in that."

Cindy rolled her eyes and swung her rocket around. "Then I guess we do this the hard way," she called back. Without waiting for a reply she zoomed back towards the approaching battle drones.

"No! Wait! Come back!" Jimmy shouted, knowing even as he did so that it was useless. With a grunt of disgust he turned his own ship about in pursuit of Cindy. "Ready the lasers, Goddard," he ordered. Goddard barked an acknowledgement and a dangerous red glow came into his eyes as they rapidly gained on Cindy.

On the surface Cindy's maneuver was the height of folly to any seasoned pilot. In a combat between aircraft (or spacecraft), the preferred course of action was to maneuver so that you could fire on the enemy without the danger of your target returning fire. Heading directly towards your adversary, as Cindy was doing, was the least desirable plan of attack, as it offered the enemy the opportunity to return fire. Jimmy knew this, and was panicked at the possible consequences of Cindy's actions. Cindy, on the other hand, neither knew nor cared about the finer points of ship-to-ship combat. All that mattered to her was the fact that fleeing from the pursuing ships gave them the opportunity to take potshots at her without any chance of her fighting back. "All right, you mechaniclods," she snarled. "It's payback time!" She flipped a switch, setting the large bit on the front of the Fire Drill spinning.

Fortunately Cindy's actions proved to be the exactly the thing to do. The battle drones, programmed to anticipate the actions of experienced pilots, were thrown into a state of computerized confusion at the sight of an enemy disregarding all rules of engagement and barreling straight towards them. The majority of the scooters scattered in a frantic attempt to avoid a collision and maneuver into a more favorable attack position. The remaining few in Cindy's path continued to fire on Cindy's ship, only to see the energy bolts deflecting harmlessly off the hardened screw before being turned into metallic scrap by the whirling drill moments later. Cindy completed her attack run and swooped around for another pass. "Score!" she whooped in excitement.

"Don't get cocky!" she heard Jimmy yell. She twisted around just in time to see Goddard blast two scooters that had dropped in behind her. The lasers did not destroy the ships, but succeeded in the upsetting the scooters' delicate stability. The two craft wobbled for a second before coming together in a violent collision and disintegrating in a spectacular ball of fire.

"Still two up on you, Neutron!" Cindy shouted. She swerved crazily to avoid the shots from a group of scooters coming in high on her port side and changed course to intercept them.

Behind her Jimmy changed course to cover her. He watched the Fire Drill shred two more scooters while a third craft, dodging to get out of the way, caromed off another scooter and spun helplessly out of control with its control mechanisms hopelessly smashed. The fourth vessel disintegrated under a withering barrage from Goddard's lasers and Cindy circled around in a search for another set of targets, whooping with exuberance. "It's not a game!" Jimmy hollered at her, trying in vain to get her attention. They had been lucky so far, he knew, but it was only a matter of time before sheer weight of numbers took their toll.

At the Candy Bar in Retroville Nick leaned back in his chair and smoothed his hair with one hand. "This show isn't too bad," he commented, "but I'd kind of like to see some real battles. These space criminals running around and shooting down unarmed civilians just doesn't do it for me."

"Maybe they're just building up to the climax," suggested Britney. "You know, letting it look like they'll get away before justice is finally done."

Oleander squinted at the screen. "There's something awful familiar about those guys," he said.

Nick waved a hand in dismissal. "Ah, you've seen one space villain, you've seen them all."

"No, he's right," said Amy, who was sitting next to Oleander. "They look familiar. But they never show them close up so it's really hard to tell who they remind me of."

Nissa shook her head in disgust. "All I know is that I hate them. I'll be glad when the good guys win."

"You can say that again," agreed Ike. He leaned forward, raising his ever-present sunglasses and squinting. "You know, there's something awfully familiar about that one."

"Which one?" asked Betty.

Ike pointed. "That round one running around in circles. It looks kind of like…like…"

Betty gasped and covered her mouth with her hand. "Oh my gosh! It's Carl!"

Nick showed only faint interest. "Carl who?"

"Carl." Betty put her hands on her hips. "Carl Wheezer? Jimmy and Sheen's friend?" She waited for some sign of recognition but got none. "In your class?" she prompted. "Always talking about llamas?"

Nick finally seemed to make the connection. "Oh, him. Is he still in school?"

"Apparently not at the moment," answered Britney.

"Hey, aren't those Libby and Sheen?" Shandra called out. A careful inspection by everyone rapidly confirmed her opinion.

"I don't get it," Nick frowned. "Why would Carl, Sheen, and Libby be helping the bad guys?"

"And where are Jimmy and Cindy?" added Betty, looking worried.

Nick couldn't resist a small dig. "You jealing a bit about that, Quinlan?"

"Shut up," Betty snorted, but her worried look didn't change. "There must be something wrong here. Jimmy and the others would never do anything like what those guys are doing."

"Hey, we all saw it. If you can't trust television, what can you trust?" Nick argued.

"Yeah," agreed Butch. "Neutron is usually an okay guy, but sometimes he's just totally out there. Who can say what he and his friends would do out in space?"

Betty wasn't ready to stop defending Jimmy and the others so easily. "You mean like when they helped us get our parents back from Yolkus? Or when Jimmy risked his life to stop that meteor and save us all?" That brought a murmur of support from the other kids. "I don't care what that stupid show says. I don't believe that any of them would ever do any of those horrible things. Except maybe Sheen." She paused to consider it. "No, not even Sheen."

"Hey, what's going on now?" someone called out.

Everyone turned back to watch the television screen. In place of the spectacle of senseless that had been parading across the screen was a scene with Jimmy, Cindy, an ominous giant in black, and a familiar visage on a monitor.

"That's that Meldar guy!" Betty called out. The others shushed her to hear what was being said.

"Revenge?" Cindy was saying. "_That's_ what this is all about?"

"Of course, that's what this is all about," the alien on the viewscreen wa saying. "Do you realize just what you jelly bags did to me? For centuries _Intergalactic Showdown_ made me king of the spacewaves. I had it all. And then you insignificant excuses for sentient life forms took it all away from me. _From me! _And to top it off, you did it all in front of the entire galaxy on my own show. And so, that's exactly what I plan to do to you. You, and those other species that helped you."

"You plan to destroy us on television?" Jimmy asked.

"Not just destroy you," a smirking Meldar replied. "I plan to have the entire galaxy cheering your destruction. If you'll direct your attention to the monitor on your right, I think you'll find the program most interesting."

Once again the audience in the Candy Bar witnessed the massacre of helpless innocents."I think I'm going to be sick," they heard Cindy say.

"I don't believe it," Jimmy said defiantly. "Our friends would never do anything like that."

"Oh, but they did," Meldar answered. "Let me show you again." Again the screen showed a pitched battle, but this time between Jimmy and Cindy's friends and armed battle drones. "You've got to love tape delay," Meldar gloated. "I think the technicians did an excellent job with the CGI, although not quite as good as your adventures on Mos Slimey. I think your Captain Valtor killed two females and a child when he aided your escape."

"You are…are perverted beyond belief," Jimmy fumed. "To take the truth and twist it for some warped purpose of yours…"

"Hey!" Meldar shot back. "I think it was one of your own species who said, 'You get me the pictures, and I'll supply the war'. You think that those half-chronal sound bites that you call news on your video channels are the truth? Anyone who broadcasts anything has a personal agenda, and shows whatever moves it along. I'm just a little more honest about it. I give the viewers what they want. If I didn't, I'd still be out of business. As it is, _Stellar Conflict_ promises to be the biggest hit the galaxy has ever seen! Even on Earth."

The screen was filled with a brief moment of static before clearing to again show the scene of Jimmy, Cindy, the ominous figure, and Meldar Prime on the viewscreen. "Revenge? _That's_ what this is all about?" Cindy began again.

"So that's it," Nick said, his face darkening with anger. "That Meldar guy has been playing us all. No one does that to Nick Dean!" He smacked a fist into his palm for emphasis. "_No one!_"

"He's a constantly planet-threatening bully!" Butch shook a massive fist at the televison screen. "And that's the worst kind!"

Betty nodded in satisfaction. "I knew that Jimmy and the others were innocent."

"We should do something!" someone called out.

"And we are!" Nick agreed wholeheartedly. "We're going to help!"

"Uh…Nick?" Betty tried.

Now that his mind was made up Nick continued to steamroll his way through. "Neutron wanted help, he's got it. We'll teach those alien freaks that they can't jerk us around like this! They mess with _one_ of us, they mess with _all_ of us!"

This was greeted with cheers from everyone but Betty. She waited patiently for the din to subside before speaking. "Nick?" she asked, somewhat more loudly than before.

"What is it, Quinlan?" Nick answered, somewhat brusquely. "We have plans to make."

"Well, before you do, you might consider a couple things."

"Which are?" asked Britney

"First," Betty said, " Jimmy and the others are a hundred trillion miles away." She waited a few seconds for everyone to let that to sink in. "And second, Jimmy left the only ships that will get us there a couple hundred million miles away in space."

"Well, there is that," Nick admitted grudgingly.

Betty, along with the others, was quiet for some time. "We had our chance to help when it mattered," she said at last, "and we blew it. It's all up to Jimmy and the rest now. And something tells me that if they fail, it won't be long before we're next."

End of Chapter 22


	23. Payback

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 23:

If anyone had been scanning a particular carrier in the far-field band of the of the quantum resonance communications spectrum they might have been puzzled by the message coming across, if not by the discordant melody then by the odd content:

"_Oh, what valiant knight will race through the lonely tracts of space_

_To ensure that stellar concord is restored?_

_He's that hero tried and true, a brave champion through and through,_

_He's that friend to me and you – he's Ultra Lord!"_

"Sheen, will you _please_ stop singing that Ultra Lord song?" Libby begged. "The first hundred verses or so should be enough."

"I can't help it," Sheen explained. "Just being out here racing through lonely tracts of space reminds me of Ultra Lord. It's not my fault that they write a new verse for every episode." A note of admiration crept into his voice. "How do you suppose they manage to do that after making nearly a thousand episodes?"

"Severe sleep deprivation or innate sadism would be my guess."

Sheen refused to be discouraged. "Cheer up, Libby. A good song makes any trip go faster."

"Then why don't you try singing one?" Libby pleaded. "Or better yet, just play it in your head."

"In my head?" Sheen sounded puzzled. "But then you won't get to hear it."

"Word that."

Sheen thought it over and shook his head. "No. No, I won't deprive you of the uplifting experience that is the saga of Ultra Lord. Where was I? Oh, yeah. Verse 113.

"_He's the hero who'll appear when the minions of fear_

_Seek to sow their bitter seeds of dark discord…"_

If she didn't need them to control her scooter Libby would have clapped her hands over her ears. _I am never_, she thought vehemently, _repeat, NEVER going anywhere without my tunes again!_ She looked over the console of her vehicle to see if there was something that would provide some alternative to Sheen's off-key serenade, or at least drown him out. It was then she noticed the tiny images on her scooter's small video monitor. "Hey, Sheen," she called out. Sheen seemed not to hear and continued singing. "Yo, Ultra Loud!" she tried again, somewhat louder.

The singing stopped. "What's up, Love Machine?" he replied. "Or should I say, 'Love My Sheen'?"

Libby frowned. "Don't call me that. Ever."

"Sorry. What's up?"

"Cork it for a minute and…on second thought, just cork it permanently. Do you see something on your viewscreen?"

"I have a viewscreen?" Sheen looked surprised and checked his own control panel. "Well, what do you know! Do you think this gets any other channels?"

"I don't know. But what's going on?"

Sheen peered at the small display. "It looks kind of like Cindy in that rocket you two came in. But what are those other things zipping around her?"

"I can't tell. But they don't look very friendly." Libby looked worried. "I think that Jimmy and Cindy might be in trouble." She looked back at the receding space station they had exited not long ago. "I think that maybe we should go back."

"But Jimmy said that he and Cindy would meet us out here. And we didn't have any problems getting away."

"I know that. But Jimmy also said that he wasn't able to deactivate all the sensors in the station. He and Cindy might have been detected." Libby came to a quick decision. "Come on. We're going back."

Libby veered off with Sheen trailing in her wake. "What about Captain Valtor?" he asked. "Shouldn't we have told him? I mean, if Jimmy and Cindy are in trouble, we'll probably need help."

"Maybe," Libby conceded, "but I am sick and tired of arguing with them every time something doesn't line up with what they want. By the time they finally decided we should go back it might be too late. But if you want to waste time trying to get them to come, you can try." She gunned the scooter's small but powerful motor and began to pull away.

"Yeah, okay," Sheen sighed increasing speed to follow. "Maybe you're right."

As it happened Sheen and Libby's new course took them past the small formation's rear guard, which was composed of Tee and his Felangian wingman. "Where you two going?" Tee called out in surprise as they whizzed past.

"To help Cindy…" Libby called back before her voice faded into the distance.

"…and Jimmy!" Sheen concluded as he, too, dwindled into the distance.

"Cindy? Jimmy?" Tee repeated, startled. He growled to himself. "This can't be good. Not good at all. Hey, wait up!" he called suddenly. "I'm coming help too, fools!" Tee wheeled around and before his wingman fully understood what was happening, raced back towards the distant station after Sheen and Libby.

Shocked at Tee's departure, which he viewed more as desertion, the guard opened the channel on his communicator. "Captain Valtor, sir! Sergeant Olmud reporting!"

"I thought my orders about maintaining absolute silence were clear, Sergeant," Valtor's voice came back through the small speaker.

"Yes, sir. But the off-worlders have broken formation."

Valtor was incredulous. "Broken formation? Why?"

"I'm not certain, sir," the sergeant replied. "but they're heading back to the station. They seemed to think there was some trouble there."

_Trouble?_ Valtor pondered this, and only then noticed the tiny images coming across on his viewscreen. It took him only a few seconds of watching the desperate battle being transmitted for him to reach the same conclusion that Libby had.

"The off-worlders have left our right flank vulnerable ,sir," Valtor heard Olmud report. "Shall we redeploy to compensate for their absence?"

It would have been easy for Valtor to give the order to do so. His training, and instincts all told him that putting as much distance between the princess, himself, and his men was paramount. But something else fought against his doing so. Perhaps his brief association with the humans, or the princess' personal devotion to them, or a personal debt of honor had made him reluctant to abandon the others so easily. It might have been that he had begun to accept Jimmy's steadfast belief that everyone – organic or mechanical – mattered. But even discounting those factors, Valtor was a warrior, trained and bred to fight, and tired of running away.

The sergeant's voice roused him from his reverie. "Sir? Shall we redeploy?"

"No." Valtor's voice strengthened as he felt more whole and alive than he had for many days. "Assume battle formation. We're going back."

In the thick of the fighting above the massive construct Cindy began to wonder if she had been a little too hasty in fighting back. Both the battle drone's initial surprise and Cindy's rush of adrenalin had worn off, and she was beginning to tire from the constant strain of ship-to-ship battle. She wrestled her craft into a tight turn in a desperate attempt to shake a persistent pursuer and gritted her teeth as the g forces seemed to turn her body into an unresponsive mass of lead. "Still with me, Neutron?" she grunted.

Jimmy's hearing was almost back to normal. "Don't worry about me, Vortex," Jimmy answered. He had it somewhat easier in his rocket than did Cindy. The Strato XL had been designed for high acceleration and Goddard was able to provide covering fire in all directions, whereas Cindy's ship had been designed for cruising and could only deal with attackers directly in front of her. Initially fortune had been in their favor. The battle drones had been disoriented by their attack and their disarray had prevented them from mounting an effective attack on the elusive ships, as the drones were in danger of being hit by their own fire. Now, however, the machines were regaining a semblance of order and coordinating their attacks. It was only a matter of time before Jimmy and Cindy were pinned by inescapable crossfire.

Goddard succeeded in disintegrating the tenacious pursuers and Cindy straightened her ship out. "Do you think we could run for it?" Cindy asked.

"Maybe. But we couldn't outrun them before, so I doubt we could now." Jimmy looked around and spotted a new group of battle drones closing in. "More bogies at four o'clock low."

"I see them." Cindy sped towards a small cluster of scooters that were assuming formation, breaking up group and forcing the would-be pursuers to pull away before colliding with their scattering comrades. "I wish that the others were here."

"I don't know if it would do any good," Jimmy countered. "There are too many of these." He paused before continued. "I think the best we can do is to give the others a decent chance to get away." He hesitated again. "I'm sorry."

"Sorry?" It took a second for her to grasp the meaning of Jimmy's message. "Oh. I see."

"Watch it," Jimmy warned. "There's a new group coming in, directly below us."

"No problem. I think a loop-the-loop should – hey!" Cindy fought with her controls as her small craft bucked and rolled like a toy in unseen hands. "What's going on?"

Jimmy's ship was having similar problems and he answered between frantic attempts to maintain control of his own vessel. "I don't know. All my controls and instruments have gone crazy." Behind him he could hear Goddard whine and yelp in distress but he was too busy to check on how his pet was doing.

As suddenly as it had begun the violent disturbance was gone. Jimmy wiped the sweat of his brow with the back of his hand. "What was that all about?" he heard Cindy demand.

"I'm not sure." Jimmy inspected his control console and satisfied himself that everything seemed to be functioning normally again.

"Do you think it was a tractor beam?" Cindy asked nervously.

"I don't know," Jimmy admitted, "but I don't think so. It's like every circuit on board just stopped working."

"Neutron!" Cindy shrieked. "Behind you! Look out!"

Jimmy snapped his head around, already knowing what he would find and cursing himself for not keeping his mind on matters at hand. Three scooters had dropped in behind him and were firing on him even as he jerked the control yoke hard over in a last-second attempt to evade the deadly barrage. He could hear a hot sizzle as one of the beams caressed the side of his rocket, scoring the skin and leaving an ugly black carbonized streak. He looked back again to better assess his pursuer's plan and formulate an effective defensive, and was amazed to see first one and then another battle drone fragmented by blasts of energy. A third looked up, seeking the source of this unexpected attack, only to have its cranial unit slagged by another blast. A scooter pulled up alongside Jimmy's rocket with a familiar figure aboard it.

"Mind if we join you?" asked Libby, steadying her rifle on the handlebars of her scooter.

"Libby?" Jimmy was torn between gratitude and annoyance. "What are you doing here?"

Sheen dropped in on Jimmy's other side. "We thought that you might need some help."

"And it's better than listening to Sheen singing the Ultra Lord theme song," Libby commented.

Cindy nodded. "That's true."

"You guys have to get out of here before it's too late," Jimmy urged them. "There are too many of them. I tried to warn you."

Libby nodded knowingly. "And what about all that, 'No one gets left behind' stuff?"

"This is different! There's no way four of us can take on all these battle drones!"

"Who said there were only four?" demanded Tee's familiar voice from above them. "I pity the fool that can't count…or can't count on his friends."

Jimmy sighed. It was useless, he knew, to argue and there was no time in any case to do so. "All right then. Watch yourselves. Stay with your wingman, and don't try to be a hero. If your in trouble, yell for help." He suddenly frowned, looking worried. "Tee, where's your wingman?"

"Back with the others, I guess." He shrugged easily. "I don't need no wingman anyway. If I have to be anywhere, I'd rather be with my friends than some wingman I don't know and that don't know me."

"Well, be careful anyway," cautioned Cindy. She stiffened and pointed to a mass of approaching battle drones. "Here they come. And they look ready for us this time."

"Just leave it to us," Tee assured her. He turned his scooter in a wide arc and headed towards the arrayed drones, his rifle propped up on the handlebars of his own vehicle. "Come and get it!"

Jimmy, Cindy, Sheen, and Libby wheeled about in support of Tee, pairing off in classic paired fighter formation. The theory behind such a formation is straightforward. With a wingman to cover him one pilot is free to concentrate on his or her attack while the wingman keeps watch for possible enemy counter-attack. In addition, any enemy attacking one craft runs the risk of finding themselves under attack by the wingman. This greatly increases the chance of survival for both pilots, but it also assumes that the odds are fairly equal. The odds were nowhere near equal, and everyone, including the battle drones, knew it.

Once again, however, the hapless drones found themselves under attack from a completely unexpected quarter, even as they closed in and opened fire on their intended victims. Again the battle drones were force to scatter, driven apart by the withering fire of two dozen armed scooters stooping on them like hawks on their prey.

"Hey, look who showed up!" said Sheen.

"Is everyone coming back?" asked Cindy.

Jimmy nodded. "I guess so." _It's too bad_, he thought to himself, _that it won't make any difference._

The Felangians and Carl assembled near Jimmy and the others. "Sorry we're late," Captain Valtor apologized.

"No big," Cindy replied. "Better late than never, after all."

"What now, Jimmy?" asked Carl.

Jimmy groaned. "I don't have any ideas. There's no way we can beat this mean drones. You shouldn't have come back."

"No," Captain Valtor told him. "That wouldn't have been right."

"Indeed not," the princess agreed vehemently.

Jimmy frowned. "And getting killed in a hopeless battle is?"

The High Captain looked thoughtful. "Somehow, I think it is. When I saw your transmission I felt I could do no other."

Jimmy saw that the horde of battle drones had almost reassembled. "Yeah, my transmission. I tried to send you all a warning and all I did was mess things up. If I…" His voice trailed off as a thought came to him. "Transmission," he repeated. "Transmission. That's it!"

"What's it?" asked Libby.

"No time to explain now. But everyone follow me!" He changed course, heading back in direction in which they had come.

The guards nearest him looked at Captain Valtor, who simply nodded. "You heard him. Follow the…that is, follow Neutron."

"Don't make me tell you twice, fools," Tee warned, shaking his fist at them. He turned to follow Jimmy, who already had Cindy, Sheen, and Libby trailing behind him. As they flew above the surface of the gigantic station Jimmy seemed to be looking for something.

"Just what's the big idea, Neutron?" called Cindy. She glanced over her shoulder. "Those battle drones are getting closer!"

"That's the idea," Jimmy answered without interrupting his search. "Come on, come on…I know it's around here somewhere," he muttered impatiently.

Libby looked confused. "What is?"

"If I'm right," Jimmy answered, "the end of our immediate problem with those battle drones."

"I know that I'm going to hate the answer," Sheen sighed, "but what if you're wrong?"

"Well, then our problem will be over anyway. But not the way we'd like."

Sheen nodded vigorously. "Yep. I knew I'd hate the answer."

Suddenly Jimmy pointed triumphantly ahead to something on the surface. "Aha! There it is!"

His friends craned their necks to see what had caught his attention. "You mean that group of towers down there on the horizon?"

"Exactly," Jimmy replied. "Everyone head straight towards them, but be sure to circle around them before you get there."

"But if we do that, those drones will cut straight across and be on top of us," objected Tee.

Jimmy simply smiled that smile that Cindy knew always meant trouble for somebody. "That's just what I'm hoping they'll do. Now I've got to tell the Felangians behind us to steer around that area ahead."

"I'll do it," volunteered Tee, as he pulled away. "They wouldn't dare mess with me."

"No, wait!" Jimmy shouted after him. "Don't go back! Just use your communicator!" He watched in exasperation as Tee zoomed into the distance, intent on his mission.

"You can use your communicator to call him back," suggested Libby.

Jimmy shook his head. "It would take as long to call him back as it would for him to reach the others," he said. "I guess he'll just have to stay with them until we get clear."

Cindy eyed the approaching towers. "Okay, Brain Boy. What exactly is so important about those towers?"

Jimmy seemed surprised. "Don't you recognize them? That's were we lost control of our ships."

"And?"

"And I finally figured out why. That's one of the antenna arrays for this broadcasting station. The signal it puts out is so powerful it scrambles any electronics circuit that gets in the way."

"I get it!" exclaimed Sheen. "When the battle drones cut straight across, the battle drones will lose control of their scooters!"

Jimmy nodded. "Even better. Those drones are electronics circuits themselves. It should put them permanently out of commission." He leaned forward. "Okay, we're almost there. Get ready. Goddard, keep an eye out behind us. If this doesn't work, we'll have to try something else." Goddard barked in acknowledgement and assumed his position.

Behind them Tee had explained Jimmy's intentions to the Felangians, who accepted the information with varying degrees of mixed skepticism and reluctance. True to his word, Tee had delivered the message to the entire group with a good deal of his own personal brand of encouragement. "Don't be giving me none of your lip," he warned as he made his way towards the back of the formation, "or I'll split it for you. Jimmy says this'll work, this'll work. Get that bad look off your face before I knock it off, fool. You want out of this, you do it Jimmy's way or not at all." He took up a position at the rear of the formation, riding herd on the Felangians like a watchful trail boss. "Now let's get going!"

By now the battle drones were close enough to again try some long-range shots. Several bolts of energy flashed past Tee and the Felangian rearguard as they began to pull into the turn around the perimeter of the antenna array. As Jimmy had hoped, the main body of the battle drones veered off on the shortest interception route, but the few closest pursuers matched the Royal Guards' flight path and maintained fire.

"Let's hope this works," said Captain Valtor.

Carl, watching the mass of enemy scooters, nodded. "I think it is."

Those nearest them took a look at the battle drones who had attempted the short cut directly above the antenna array. What they saw reminded Carl of a swarm of mosquitoes flying directly into a bug zapper. As the machines entered the column of invisible energy both they and their ships malfunctioned, causing them to loop and spin crazily. Some met fiery ends in collisions with their comrades, while the others, the control of their ships irretrievably lost, arced to their mechanical demise against the station's surface below. A few of the guards cheered.

A near-miss by an enemy's energy cannon reminded Captain Valtor back that they were not clear yet. "Guards!" he ordered over the communicator. "Battle formation! Elite Cadre, protect the princess! All others prepare to engage!"

The guards moved to obey, with some assuming protective positions around Princess Leama and others forming into attack groups and circling around to confront the much-reduced enemy forces. Jimmy and the others, watching the developments, changed course to join them. "Now, these odds I like," Sheen grinned.

"Stay sharp, guys," Jimmy cautioned, "and stay with your wingman. They still outnumber us. This isn't a game."

"Yeah, yeah," Cindy retorted. "We know. Now let's kick some robo-tail!"

With the greatly improved odds the battle slowly swung in favor of Jimmy's side. Despite the enemy's greater numbers Jimmy's group and the Felangians were able to score heavy losses on the battle drones. In the initial engagement, however, no one had realized that Tee's wingman, a member of the Elite Cadre, had followed Captain's Valtor's orders and moved to join the princess' guard, leaving Tee unprotected. It was Libby who first spotted the danger as the battle was nearing its end.

"Tee!" she called over the communicator. "You've got one closing in on you! Watch it!"

The reptilian, intent on flaming a particularly elusive target, looked about him. "Where? I can't see it."

"Seven o'clock low! Pitch out!"

"Seven o'clock?" Tee grappled with that concept. "Let's see...if the little hand is on the -"

"To your left and below you!" Libby clarified.

That was not much help to Tee. "Left? Okay, my left hand is…no, wait. I think that's my right."

The bogey was now almost directly behind Tee and lining up its shot. Its riders' rudimentary computational circuits had determined that firing prematurely would reveal its location to its intended target, and that it should wait until it was certain of a kill before firing. "Hang tight, Tee," Libby said. "We're coming to help!" With Sheen behind her Libby dove down towards the battle drones that were threatening Tee. They were too far to have any reasonable chance of hitting the drone, but Libby fired anyway in the desperate hope of flustering the drone and spoiling its shot.

Her hope proved to be in vain. The pilot drone, to whom such emotions as fear were alien, maintained course as the other obtained target lock on Tee and fired. Tee himself was not hit, but the shots succeeded in ripping through the scooter's frame and critical circuitry. Deprived of both thruster and maneuvering control Tee's craft begin spinning wildly in a fatal spiral towards the station far below. The drones, satisfied that the enemy was destroyed, began its dispassionate search for a new target.

"Tee!" yelled Sheen. "Pull out!"

"Can't, Sheen," Tee grunted over Sheen's speaker. "They really did a number on this bike. All kinds of electrical damage."

"Don't panic! I'm coming to help you!"

Tee's voice was uncharacteristically sharp. "Stay where you are!" It was surreal for Sheen to hear Tee's voice coming across at normal volume even as his scooter disappeared into the distance below. "It's too late to help me. You got to stay with Jimmy…and help your friends. That's what matters now."

"But…" Sheen's voice began to quaver. "But…"

"Thanks for being my friend." There was a pause. "I love you, fool."

Sheen stared in the direction that Tee's scooter had vanished, trying in vain to spot the tiny scooter. For what seemed forever there was nothing. Then a tiny flicker of light, like a distant match in the darkness, appeared on the surface of the station. The light glowed briefly before fading into nothingness to leave a dark spot, a miniscule scar on the vast expanse below, behind. Sheen continued to stare at the place the scooter had impacted. When he looked up again there was a fury in his face that Libby had never seen before and frightened.

"Sheen," she said, choosing her words carefully, "maybe we should…" Her voice trailed off at Sheen's intense stare. "Or not," she concluded. "Whichever."

Without saying a word or checking to see if Libby was following, Sheen turned his scooter in search of the battle drone who had shot down Tee. The gunner drone had acquired a new target, and only became aware of Sheen's approach when Sheen's rifle had turned its scooters pilot into molten fragments. Reacting to the new threat, the gunner turned its weapon on Sheen and returned fire. Sheen ignored the streamers of energy directed towards him and continued to blast away. Without its pilot the drone was an easy target and Sheen quickly dispatched it, maintaining fire even after the drone had been reduced to scrap.

"That's for messing with the Sheen and his lady," he said quietly. "You still owe me for Tee."

Jimmy, who had watched Tee's final encounter on Goddard's monitor, felt a wave of nausea. _How many more?_ he thought in a daze. _How many more?_

End of Chapter 23


	24. Consequences

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 24:

Lord Versile stood impassively at the head of the honor guard of troopers to greet the Network transport now arriving in the station's main docking bay. The secure communications chamber that had been wrecked by Goddard's main core implosion was still undergoing repairs, but Lord Versile knew that the temporary lack of high-level communications would not have mandated this visit. The sleek craft was the fastest in the corporate fleet. Even the troopers flanking the red carpet leading from the landing area to their dark master knew that its use and presence here could only mean trouble, and they shifted uneasily as the ship settled to the deck and the debarkation ramp swung silently open and figures emerged through the ship's hatchway. Lord Versile was not surprised to see Meldar Prime float down the ramp with his retinue of elite bodyguards, but observed the unfamiliar drone bringing up the rear with interest.

"Lord Versile," Meldar greeted him with a smile as the dark lord sank to one knee and bowed his head.

The smile meant nothing to Versile. He knew that behind every Network executive's smile were teeth read to rend and tear with terrible swiftness. "All goes well, my master?"

"That would depend," Meldar replied, "on how things go here."

The dark lord rose, dwarfing Meldar's small form. "The station is being repaired. The enemy inflicted no permanent damage."

"And our primary transmission channels?"

"All content is again under our control."

Meldar nodded. "What about the battle drones?"

"Those that can be are being repaired," Versile replied patiently. "More are being constructed to replace those that were irreversibly damaged. We should have full strength within two standard timeparts."

"I see." The next words were deceptively casual. "And what about Neutron?" Meldar let the question hang unanswered for several seconds before driving the point further home. "And his friends?"

"They have been neutralized. They pose no further threat to this station nor to the network."

"Don't they? Are you sure?" Meldar's smile had become an angry scowl. "What about that information the Felangian robot passed to them?"

Lord Versile's reply was unusually long in coming. "The nature of the data will soon be known. I am having the robots memory deconstructed to determine the contents of the data disk, but it cannot be of any consequence."

"Nothing is inconsequential with those unpredictable humans!" snapped Meldar. "If it was important enough for Princess Leama to get to the First Alliance it can only mean trouble. You can bet that Neutron and his pals will be back once they figure out what it is."

"They would not dare to return."

"Other people might give up," Meldar growled, "but not Neutron. Oh, no. He'll try to find some way of shutting us down permanently, despite the odds. In fact, I'm counting on it."

As familiar as he was with his master's evil intentions, this statement made no sense to Lord Versile. "What do you mean?"

"I mean that I'm making him a challenge that he can't refuse."

"Challenge?"

"All in good time. But first," Meldar continued with a smile, "I should get to the main reason for my visit." He clasped his hands behind his back and slowly floated back and forth in front of his sinister agent. "Things here haven't been going too well, have they?"

Versile's armored mask, while expressionless, still seemed to wear a frown. "Everything is under control."

"Is it?" The chairman began ticking off his fingers as though addressing a wayward child. "You were supposed to stop the princess' mission, and you didn't. You had Neutron and the others right in your hands, and you let them get away. You should have stopped them from escaping, and you couldn't." Meldar shook his head sadly. "Perhaps I overestimated your capabilities."

"Whatever I am," the dark lord rasped, "I am what you made me."

Meldar smiled thinly. "That argument might fly with some excecutives," he conceded, "but I'm willing to admit when I've made a mistake and correct it. I think that the problem is that you're spreading yourself too thin. I've decided that I should lighten your load a bit."

At a snap of Meldar's fingers the unfamiliar drone advanced to stand by Meldar. Both Versile and the drone studied each other with some animosity. "Assistance is not required," Versile rumbled, his voice sounding almost angry. "I am fully capable of fulfilling my duties."

"You don't understand," Meldar corrected him. "Grod isn't here to assist you. You'll be here to assist him." All trace of amiability evaporated from his voice. "Is that clear?"

Versile stood mute and motionless, digesting this change in his status, before bowing his head. "As you wish, my master."

Meldar relaxed and smiled, his pleasant demeanor restored. "Good. And now, we have a special message to transmit."

On a particularly large asteroid at the fringe of the Hysus Rapids Jimmy and the others had taken refuge in a spacious cavern and were considering their next move. Because there was little danger of detection or of a collision with another asteroid Jimmy had broken out his hypercube and had distributed the rations and camping supplies he had packed, deciding that they would have time for some much-needed rest and nourishment. He had not expected that there would be so many in the group and had thought to bring only three blankets to protect against their somewhat chill surroundings. He proposed distributing them to the girls and apologized to Captain Valtor, but the Felangians assured him that it would not be an issue.

"We are not homeotherms," he explained. "We are not bothered by heat and cold."

"Hey, no problems, big guy," Carl answered. "It's nice of you to be so up front, but there's no problem if you were all homeotherms. We're all open-minded."

Cindy rolled her eyes. "Carl, a homeotherm is an organism that maintains its internal temperature over a fairly limited range."

Carl blinked. "Say what?"

"Homeotherms are warm-blooded!"

The explanation wasn't much help. "Oh, you mean like those flamenco dancers?"

Cindy gave up amd Carl wandered over to Jimmy. "What now, Jimmy?" he asked, chewing on a granola bar. Jimmy was glad that he had brought quite a number of them, as the Felangians had found them to be quite palatable.

Jimmy listlessly regarded the disk Exjay Nine had entrusted to him. "I guess I should take a look at this," he finally answered. "There might be something on this that might help."

"Why don't you just ask Lee what's on it?" suggested Cindy.

Jimmy inserted the disk into Goddard's universal data drive. "I'm not sure she really knows exactly what's on this. She just got it from some Felangian spies who told her that it must be delivered to the other members of the First Alliance." He frowned. "The data on this disk is awfully dense. It will probably take some time to get through it all. You guys might want to find something else to do while I'm going through it."

At Jimmy's suggestion Carl wandered off but Cindy, curious to see what was on the enigmatic disk that had begun this entire adventure, remained with Jimmy. Carl went first to check on Sheen and Libby and found them together on one side of the cave. Neither said anything as he approached and sat on the ground next to them.

"Hi, guys," Carl greeted them.

"Hi, Carl," Libby replied.

"Hey, Carl," added Sheen without enthusiasm.

Carl blinked and looked around. "So, what's going on?"

"Oh, not much. Same old same old. You know," Libby answered.

Carl squatted down. "What do you think is going to happen now?"

Sheen shrugged. "Does it really matter? Does _anything_?"

Carl started to answer but Libby caught his eye and shook her head. "You know, Carl," she said, "I think that Lee wanted to talk with you."

"Really?"

"Yeah." She pointed towards a group of guardsmen. "I think she's over there. You can probably see her."

Carl looked in the indicated direction and nodded. "Oh. Okay." Carl pulled himself up and shambled off. "I guess I should go see what's up. Thanks for letting me know."

"No problem," Libby assured him. When Carl was out of earshot she confronted Sheen. "Okay, Sheen, spill it," she ordered. "What's up?"

Sheen kicked at some pebbles. "What's up with what?"

"You know. Ever since we got here you've been acting like…like…"

"…like my best friend died?" He kicked at another group of pebbles, more savagely this time. "Is that what you were going to say?"

Libby realized she'd struck a raw nerve. "So that's it." She sighed. "Sheen, I miss Tee, too. I only met him a couple times, but he was my friend, too. Believe me, I know how you feel."

"No, you don't." Sheen lurched to his feet and walked away, stopping to lean against a rock wall with his face turned away. Libby followed him but said nothing. She knew that it would come out eventually, and reasoned that silence was her best chance of finding out what Sheen was going through. Her strategy worked, because after only a few minutes Sheen began to speak. "When Jimmy, Carl, and I were captured on that ship with those super villains, it was Tee that got us out. If it wasn't for him, we might all still be stuck back millions of years in the past. Oh, sure, that might have been cool for a while, but I've been there before and believe me, it would have gotten pretty boring. If it weren't for Tee, Zix and Travoltron would never have helped us out."

"I know," Libby said softly. "I was there, too."

"But you weren't his friend. I was." Sheen's voice began to quaver. "But I wasn't just his friend. I was his first friend. I'd never been anyone's first friend before." He wiped a hand under his nose, snuffling. "Even when I was four years old and had my imaginary friend Gidney, he already had a friend named Cloyd. Even though we did things together, I could tell they didn't really want me along. After a while they just stopped coming around. My dad tried to tell me that they'd moved away, maybe to the moon, but I knew better."

"Sheen…" Libby tried gently.

Sheen didn't seem to hear her. "And then, when I finally met Jimmy and Carl, they were already friends. No one else at school wanted me to be their friend. I was just the weird kid…or Ultra Dork…or Shine…but with Tee… we were…I was…something special…"

Sheen's voice finally failed and gave way to quiet sobs. Libby stood silently by, not quite sure how to ease his pain or even if she should try at this point. _How much_, she wondered, _have we really understood this boy?_ Hesitantly at first but with growing certainty she placed a hand on Sheen's shoulder and gently turned him around to gather him in her arms. "It's all right, Sheen," she whispered quietly, rubbing his back. "Tee's gone, but you still have friends." She pulled back so that she could lift his face and look into his teary eyes. "And my friends are always special." That said, she embraced him again and held him tightly. "Always."

"So what do we do know, Neutron?" Cindy asked. Goddard was still digesting the information on the disk and Jimmy had not said anything since the process had begun.

"Do?"  
"You know. About Meldar and his new toy out there." Cindy waved an arm in a vague indication of what "out there" meant. "Are we going after him, or what?"

Jimmy simply shook his head. "If the Felangians want to do that, I guess they can try."

"The Felangians?" Cindy blinked. "What about us? What about you?"

"I think I've done enough, don't you think?"

The harsh tone in Jimmy's voice put Cindy on the defensive. "So that's it?" she countered. "You think you've put in your time and you're calling it quits?"

"Don't you get it? Haven't you seen what's been happening?" Jimmy snapped back. He stalked back and forth in front of her and shook his fist in impotent fury, raging at the indifferent gods of fate. "In case you haven't noticed, two people who should still be alive are gone. First Exjay Nine, and then Tee. Because of me! Me and my brilliant idea that I could make a difference somehow!"

"And how do you know that you haven't?" Cindy returned hotly. "How do you know that things wouldn't be a lot worse if you hadn't tried? How?"

Jimmy met Cindy's challenge with obstinance. "I just do, is all. With Meldar's new matrix generators the only chance we ever was to be a minor inconvenience. I didn't realize what the situation was in time and because of my stupidity Exjay Nine and Tee are gone now. We've let the galaxy know what he's up to, so it's up to them now." He returned to monitoring Goddard's progress with the data disk with a grunt. "There's no way that I'm letting anyone else get hurt because of me."

Jimmy was always startled when he was reminded of just how strong Cindy could be. In one motion she spun him around and dragged him forward by the front of his shirt until they were almost nose to nose. "Does everything always have to be about you, Neutron?" she shouted angrily. "The way I remember it Exjay Nine came to you looking for help. And from what I hear you didn't drag Tee into all this. He came along because he seemed to think that what you had to say made sense. And he wasn't the only one, Neutron. Libby and I came thirty light-years because we felt the same way as Tee."

"Actually," Jimmy answered weakly, "I think I said that it was closer to twenty-five light-years."

"Shut up!" Cindy was breathing hard now, the intensity of her emotions taking its toll. "Okay. Tee and Exjay Nine are gone. But you aren't the one that did it. It was Meldar, Neutron. He's the one that did it, not you." She suddenly released her hold on Jimmy's shirt, causing him to drop with a thud to the ground. "But maybe that doesn't matter to you. Maybe it doesn't even matter to you that they're gone. Because if you walk away now, the reason they were ever here with you never really meant anything."

It was maddening, Jimmy thought, how Cindy could always seem to put him in the wrong. While he was searching for a scathing rebuttal both he and Cindy became aware of Carl standing off to the side. "What is it, Carl?" Jimmy snapped.

"I don't want to interrupt anything important," Carl whimpered, "but there's something you should both see." His voice dropped to a frightened whisper. "It's Meldar."

Jimmy's anger dissolved into apprehension and he hurried after Carl and Cindy towards the Felangians who were gathered in small groups around the scooters. Jimmy joined Cindy and Carl at one scooter and watched the events unfolding on the scooter's small viewscreen. It was, as Carl had said, Meldar Prime was making an announcement of some kind.

"…sorry that _Stellar Conflict_ had to be cancelled like that, but that's one of the hazards of working with amateurs. Yes, it seems that one badly-coiffed malcontent who shall remain nameless decided to do some unauthorized improvisation." Meldar's grin seemed a bit strained for a few seconds while he appeared to grit his teeth. "Fortunately," the odious alien went on, "we've decided to do some rewrites of our own and go to the big finish."

"I don't like the way he said 'finish'," Cindy whispered to no one in particular.

"Yes, folks, we here at the Network are committed to bringing you top-notch, edge-of-your-seat entertainment, no matter what it costs…or who, for that matter. As some young hooligans recently discovered, the energy in our trans-galactic transmission channel can really pack a wallop. Well, I'm here to tell you that they ain't seen nothing yet. Crank the wattage up a few thousand decibels and now you've really got something that will really heat up the airwaves. I tell you, it's gonna be a hot time in the old town when we go live with that transmitter. And who will our first lucky viewers be?" Meldar seemed to consider it, thoroughly enjoying his private game of cat-and-mouse. "Well, since we owe so much to a certain whippy-dip genius, I think that we should bestow that particular honor on the one, the only, the late…great…planet…Earth!"

Although he knew that Meldar couldn't possible see him, Jimmy could not help feeling that this announcement was directed right at him. The alien's sinister smirk seemed almost a challenge of some kind.

"So, join us right here in 24 hours – Earth time – to see the final fade-out of that irritating little mudball once and for all, brought to you live…in a manner of speaking." Meldar started to end the transmission and paused. "Oh, yes. To you viewers out there who might object to this Networks broadcasting policies, I'd just like to leave you with one important thought." The smile faded into a harsh scowl. "You could be next." The leering face slowly faded from the screen as the transmission ended, leaving Jimmy, Carl, and Cindy stunned.

"He's going to attack Earth?" asked Carl fearfully.

Cindy shook her head. "Not attack. Annihilate. If he can really crank up that transmission signal the way he says he can, he'd fry the entire planet like an overcooked egg." She looked at Jimmy, who still appeared to be in shock. "What are we going to do?"

Jimmy said nothing. _Just when I think I'm out_, he thought numbly, _they drag me right back in._

End of Chapter 24

Author's Notes:

Some Jay Ward cartoon fans might have recognized the names of Sheen's imaginary childhood friends. Gidney and Cloyd were the names of the moon men that Rocky and Bullwinkle occasionally encountered in their many hilarious misadventures.


	25. Audience Reaction

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 25:

Meldar Prime leaned and put his arms behind his head, sighing contentedly. "That should get their attention," he remarked with satisfaction. "I just wish I could see the looks on their faces."

"Is it really wise to announce your intentions to your enemies in this manner?"

Meldar twisted around to face Lord Versile and frowned, but before he could answer Grod stepped between him and his demoted underling. "Yours is not to question why, underling," the drone rasped. "Your duty is simply to obey."

"Well said, Grod." Meldar smiled and nodded approval. "Very well said, indeed. I knew you were executive material from the first moment I activated you."

The dark lord, however, was neither intimidated and nor finished. "It is a mistake to broadcast your plans in this manner," he insisted. "The humans will attempt to stop you."

Grod moved a step closer to his insubordinate assistant but stopped at a gesture from his master. "Of course they'll try to stop me!" Meldar floated from his seat to hover directly in front of Lord Versile's black mask. "But do you really think those backwater ozone-sniffers have anything on their mudball planet that could stop this station?"

Versile consider this. "No. But Neutron and the others may also have received your signal."

"Oh, good," Meldar replied with exaggerated delight. "It's good to know that omniband signal I used might not have been wasted." He smacked a fist into his palm. "Of course they received the signal!"

"You meant to frighten them into surrender?"

"Surrender?" The little alien shook his head and wagged a finger at Versile. "Oh, no. Not him. Not Neutron. As long as he has two sticks to rub together to make a fire he and his friends will try _something_ to stop this station and save his pathetic planet."

Versile seemed to consider this. "If he poses no threat, then why challenge him?"

"Why?" Meldar blinked. "Haven't you learned anything about the entertainment industry?"

"Apparently not."

Meldar scrutinized Versile's expressionless mask, trying to decide whether the dark form looming before him was trying to deliberately provoke him. "Then I'll sum it up in one word: showmanship. There's one thing people love more than a hero, and that's to see a hero fail. But he can't just fail in some trivial task. It's no good to have him fall out of a tree saving a cat, or get hit by a car helping some old lady across the street. No, he has to fail in just the right way - with the odds stacked against him, one shot left in his gun, and the fate of the world itself hanging in the balance. That's what the viewers want, and that's exactly what they're going to get. Grod!"

The drone bowed. "By your command."

"How are the repairs going?"

"Our battle forces with all capability upgrades are at full complement."

Meldar nodded with satisfaction. "Good. Have all units prepare for battle and make sure that all broadcasting facilities are ready. When the humans show up, I want to be sure they get a warm welcome. And I want every second to go out live, right up to the big finish."

Meldar left with the hulking Grod trailing behind him, leaving Lord Versile to ponder Meldar's words. _You may have set up the humans for their greatest defeat_, he conceded to himself, _but from great defeats have come even greater victories_. With that he strode off to check the status of Bubo's analysis.

"He's insane!" Khormak pounded the table before him to underscore his point. "There's no other explanation."

"Perhaps you'd like to tell him that," the Junkman challenged.

"It doesn't change anything," King Goobot pointed out. "Destroying Earth is madness. Madness!"

"I thought you hated Earth. I think you'd be happy to see it destroyed."

"But Earth was supposed to be _ours_, Junkman" was the Yolkian's unhappy answer. "We wanted the humans as slaves and sacrifice, not completely destroyed. What are we supposed to offer Poultra Junior, Junior if the humans are all gone?"

The Junkman rolled his eyes. "Spoken like a true humanitarian."

"Humanitarian?" Khormak sounded puzzled.

"Well, if vegetable-eaters are called vegetarians, what would you call someone who eats humans?"

Khormak considered that. "Hmm. Good point."

"We don't _eat_ humans," Goobat protested. "We just enslave them and offer them as sacrifices."

"A mere bagatelle," the Junkman dismissed with a wave of his hand. "If I were you, however, I'd keep my protests to myself. Unless, of course," he continued, "you'd care to tell Meldard whether you'd like your planet scrambled or sunny side up."

"I must say, Junkman," Khormak noted with some suspicion, "that you're taking this very well. I thought that you were interested in wringing every last quatloo you could from Earth. You can't very well do that after Meldar turns it into a smoking cinder."

Meldar smiled beatifically. "My friends, there is an old saying in the business. If the boss is tipping the scales, it doesn't hurt to shave the weights."

The others stared at him from the Junkman's communication screens. Khormak voiced Goobot's response for him. "Huh?"

The Junkman sighed. "Quite simply, this is between him and Neutron. It's very possible that Meldar will win. But maybe - just maybe - Neutron will pull this off. I figure that with some shrewd maneuvering we could come out on top regardless of who wins."

"And jus how do you figure that?" asked Goobot, intrigued.

"Quite simply. If we were to provide some discreet assistance to the humans, they would be indebted to us should they win. And should Meldar win…well, we're all his allies, aren't we?"

"You," Khormak announced coldly, "are a duplicitous, underhanded, cold-blooded opportunist." He sighed. "I wish I'd though of that."

"Do you…do you actually mean that we help Neutron and the others?" Goobot stammered. "Are you insane as well?"

"Hey!" the Junkman answered defiantly. "A sworn enemy is a sworn enemy, but business is business. We don't have to fight with or for them. We just stand back while Meldar has his fun and let the chips fall where they may. And if a few of those chips land in our own pockets…well, who's to say that isn't fair? Now, are you in, or out?"

Khormak slowly nodded. "In."

"In," Goobot grudgingly agreed.

The Junkman smiled. "Good. I'll make the necessary arrangements. I'll let you know what I'll need from you."

On Earth, a red-haired 17-year-old snatched up what appeared to be a PDA, but was in reality far more, and spoke urgently into it. "Wade, did you see what Ron and I just saw?"

On the device's small video screen a young boy appeared. "Me, you, and everyone else in the world. It was even on the Kim-municator's private frequency."

Kim stared. "Is that even possible?"

"Apparently, yes." Wade looked uncharacteristically vexed. "But to transmit on all frequencies simultaneously like that, you'd have to modulate an impulse."

"And that is sick and wrong because…?"

"Because any modulation I know of involves a time element, and since an impulse has no duration it beats me how anyone could do that."

"Tell me," Kim Possible implored, "that it was just a network promo or something."

Wade pored over some computer printouts and shook his head. "Sorry, Kim. If it was a preview, the originating station has a pretty remote transmitter."

"How remote?" asked Ron Stoppable, looking over Kim's shoulder.

"Hard to say, but from the readings I'd say about 130 trillion miles." For Ron's benefit, he added, "That's 130 million million miles."

"Aggh!" Ron clutched his head in agony. "Too many zeros! _ Too many zeros!_" His ever-present naked mole rat Rufus put his paws on his head and moaned in commiseration.

"130 trillion miles?" Kim did some figuring. "Wade, that's not even in the Solar System!"

"Way beyond, actually. But it appears to be getting closer."

Kim frowned, waiting for the other shoe to drop. "And?"

"I can't be sure, because the source was moving relativistically -"

"Wait a minute." Ron's hands fell from his head as he furrowed his brow in confusion. "It's bringing its family along?"

Kim sighed and rolled her eyes, thinking that Ron's hours in science class had been a complete waste of time. "He means traveling near or at the speed of light, Ron."

Wade nodded in agreement. "In this case a lot faster. But, as I was saying, from my calculations twenty-four hours should put it somewhere in the solar system, just like that guy said."

"Okay. So it looks like the broadcast is legit. The question now is, how do I stop it?"

Wade looked almost embarrassed at that. "Umm...I hate to say it, but you can't."

"What?" Kim seemed offended by that. "How can you say that? I can do anything! Just read my Web site!"

"Actually, Kim, Wade authored your Web site," Ron pointed out helpfully.

Kim ignored that and continued to address Wade. "Point A to Point B is your department, Wade. So just get me there and see if I can't stop this thing."

"That's the problem, Kim," Wade told her. "There's no way to get you there. Even if that thing was inside the Solar System there's no ride I can hook you up with to get you there in time to do anything."

"I don't believe that." As much as she trusted Wade's judgement Kim refused to give up. "Check those secret government sites you keep hacking. There must be something that can get me into space."

Wade shook his head. "Already checked. The most advanced spaceship designs are still years away from interplanetary travel, much less an interstellar jump." He paused to scrutinize something on his monitor. "And you might want to tell your dad that his fuel consumption rate calculations seem a little optimistic for the Centaurus Project."

Kim was momentarily shocked at this. "Wade, have you been snooping in my dad's private files again?"

"Big picture, Kim," Ron reminded her.

Wade nodded vigorously. "Yeah. What he said."

"Right. Big picture." Kim paused and considered her options. "Wade, what about Jimmy's rocket? You know - the one Ron and Cindy took to the North Pole. Could that work?"

"Maybe." It had been some months and Wade tried to recall the details of the Strato XL. "I've been too busy to go over all the specs, but from what I saw of the propulsion system and engine design, starflight potential is a definite possibility. You want me to see if I can arrange a loaner?"

"Please and thank you."

Wade typed furiously on his keyboard before sighing. Wade was undeniably the best there was at what he did, but Kim recognized the sigh and realized the implications. "Trouble?"

Wade nodded. "Apparently. I tried to access Jimmy's Vox system but it seems he's not in. All I get is a notification saying that he's away and isn't sure when he'll be back."

"That's all?" asked Ron.

"Other than an apology to NASA about borrowing some variable thrust valve from a warehoused booster rocket and promising to return it once his school's science fair is over." Wade flopped back in his chair. "So, now what?"

Kim stood quietly, turning the situation over in her mind several times before accepting the inevitable conclusion. "We wait."

"Are you all right?"

Carl looked up and stumbled awkwardly to his feet upon recognizing the speaker. "Oh. Hi, Lee. I mean, Leama. I mean, Your Highness," he fumbled. "I didn't see you standing there."

"'Lee' is all right," the Princess assured him. She took a seat on one side of the rock Carl had vacated and patted a spot next to her. "Have a seat."

"Umm…maybe I'd better not. Captain Valtor isn't very happy about how I've been acting around you."

"He has always been…how do you say it? A 'stiff shirt'?"

"I think you mean 'stuffed shirt'," Carl answered.

"However you say it." She made a face. "Don't worry. If he comes by you are simply obeying my orders, like any good guardsman. So, please. Take a seat."

At her insistence Carl sat down beside her, although he was careful to leave a respectable distance between himself and the princess. For a time neither said anything until Carl, feeling that he should say something, asked, "Is there anything I can do for you?"

"I was going to ask you the same thing."

Carl looked at the princess in amazement. "You were?" he blurted out.

"Yes." She looked at him gravely, her quiet grey eyes fixed on his. "You haven't said much since that message from Meldar. I thought maybe I could help"

"Oh. That." Carl shrugged and looked down. "I guess when your planet is going to be destroyed, you don't feel much like talking."

Leama shook her head. "No, it isn't just that. Something else is bothering you. Your other friends aren't acting like this. I don't think that Sheen has ever stopped talking."

"Libby says that if Sheen doesn't have anything to say, he'll say it anyway."

"Possibly. But what's bothering you?"

Carl found himself in the awkward situation of having an opportunity to bare his soul, but to the last person he wished to know his shortcomings. In normal circumstances he would have remained silent, but these were not normal circumstances. She was, after all, a princess and for all anyone knew Carl's life as he knew it would be over in less than a day. "I guess you might as well know."

Leama nodded. "I'm listening."

"When I came on this trip, I wanted to do something important so that everyone would know that I wasn't a member of the Royal Guard just because we were friends. But…" Carl fought to find the right words to express how he felt. "But ever since we started on this, I haven't done anything at all. I've just gotten in the way, and slowed everyone down, and made Captain Valtor mad. Maybe it would have been better if I hadn't come. I'm not the kind of person you need in your Royal Guard." Carl punctuated this with a sigh. "Or a…friend."

"So that's it." Leama edged closer and put one hand on Carl's. "Carl, sometimes just being there for someone when they need you is doing a lot, even if isn't to fight any great battles or perform some daring rescues. The Royal Guard isn't just a team of great warriors. They're people that the royal family can really trust, not just to protect them or to risk their lives in their service, but to do the right thing." She waited for this to sink in before continuing. "People like you."

Carl looked up, a glimmer of hope in his face. "Really?"

"Really." She leaned closer so that all Carl could see was her eyes. "When my father died, Captain Valtor didn't fail in his duty like he thought he had. He was doing what he thought was best. I don't blame him for that, any more than I can blame my father for what he did. I can see that he was right trying to help those people still on the ship. That's what I need to change about Felangie. You're different from the other members of the Guard, but that's all right. That's why I wanted you in the Royal Guard, so that my people could see that something isn't wrong just because it's different, or that someone isn't as important just because they aren't the same." She patted his hand. "My father once told me that a true warrior fights the battles they were destined to fight. You haven't fought any yet, because your destiny lies elsewhere. When your battle comes, you'll know when to fight it."

This didn't seem very reassuring to Carl. "Will I win? I don't usually win anything."

"If that is your destiny."

A disturbance nearby attracted their attention and Princess Leama stood as Captain Valtor approached. Carl hastily got to his feet as well as the high captain shot him a dark look, and wondered how long he had been watching them. "My apologies, Your Highness," the captain said. "Jimmy Neutron has an announcement that he wishes Sir Wheezer to hear."

"Thank you, Captain Valtor," the princess replied primly. She offered her arm to Carl, who clumsily took it. "Let us both hear what he has to say."

There was a crowd of Royal Guardsmen around Jimmy but it parted willingly to allow the princess and her escort through. When the two reached the front of the crowd Carl was shocked to see how haggard Jimmy looked. When Jimmy was sure everyone was assembled, he began to speak. "Goddard has finished accessing the information on the disk, and as I thought it contains complete technical specifications for Meldar's Video Star, that space station we were on. I've gone over the data, and I think that there's good news and bad news."

"So what are they?" demanded Cindy.

Jimmy rubbed his tired eyes. "The good news is that there may be a way of stopping that thing before it reaches Earth and destroys it."

"There _may_ be a way?" Libby echoed. "If that's the good news, then what's the bad news?"

"Whether we stop it or not," Jimmy replied, "I don't think we're going to survive."

End of Chapter 25

Author's Notes:

When I started this story many months ago I hadn't intended to have an appearance by Kim Possible and her friends, as the end of the Disney series had been announced and I had paid a fond farewell tribute to it in "A Glitch in Time". More recently, it was announced that a fourth season of Kim Possible was in the works and I felt that a world-threatening catastrophe couldn't help but attract the attention of the teen heroine. Once the new episodes begin airing I may do another crossover, but that's some time away.


	26. A New Hope

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 26:

Goddard took his place at the center of the small circle of observers as Jimmy prepared to explain the situation. He had had no sleep to speak of since leaving Earth and that, coupled with his guilt over the loss of both Exjay Nine and Tee and his intensive study of the data disk, had worn him thin. Even Cindy, who usually peppered Jimmy with taunts and insults whenever he made a formal presentation, kept quiet as he spoke.

"As you now know," Jimmy said, "that station we were on, called the Video Star, is a massive communications station that was constructed under the directions of Meldar Prime, who is now the chairman of the galactic broadcasting network. The data disk confirms that the he had considerable financial and logistic assistance from the Junkman, King Goobot of Yolkus, and ex-Minister Khormak."

"Khormak!" spat Captain Valtor, who was standing on the outer edge of the circle.

Jimmy nodded. "I'm afraid so. Apparently Khormak still had a number of friends in positions of power on Felangie. Acting on instructions passed on to them by Khormak, they were responsible for keeping Felangie isolated from the othe members of the First Alliance."

"I suspected that something was going on," Princess Leama commented. "There were signs that something was not right - delayed communications, unanswered inquiries, unexplained transfer of key personnel, missing reports. I asked the Royal Guard to investigate some time ago."

"Well, they succeeded. In the process, though, they found out much more than they were looking for. They discovered the existence of the Video Star and Meldar's plot to use it to crush the First Alliance. Knowing that Meldar had access to any interstellar communications, they didn't dare send the information to you through regular channels. They must have physically delivered the information to you somehow."

"They did," the princess acknowledged. "Exjay Nine brought the information with him with a message that it affected the safety not only of Felangie but the First Alliance as well. He must have been followed, because almost immediately Felangie itself was attacked. We barely got away in a cruiser, but were waylaid by Lord Versile's ship."

Cindy frowned. "Those traitors that Khormak was dealing with must have notified the Network."

"No doubt. Fortunately…" Jimmy stopped as his tired mind considered that. _Fortunately?_ he questioned. _Can any of this really be called fortunate?_ Too weary to delve any deeper into it he went on. "Fortunately, Exjay Nine eluded capture and made it to Earth with the information…and here we are."

"Which is where?" asked Libby.

In answer Jimmy called, "Goddard! Schematics!" Obediently Goddard activated his built-in holoprojector so that the familiar spherical form of the Video Star appeared and rotated slowly in the air before them. The detail on the image was so extraordinary that Cindy, who had flown over the surface, felt could easily recognize some of the features. Jimmy resumed speaking, and as he did so various parts of the station lit up in different colors to illustrate his comments. "As you can see, the station has six antenna arrays, spaced equidistantly around the surface, allowing it receive and broadcast in all directions simultaneously. As Meldar said in his broadcast, the full power of the station can be channeled into a single array, turning its emitters into a crude but extremely powerful and effective death ray. Other than that the station appears to have no real weaponry, other than the battle drones that also secure the interior, but there is a fairly sophisticated grid of sensors and defensive screens.

"The interior of the station," he went on, "consists mostly of support and monitoring systems with utility and access corridors. And the entire complex is powered from a single energy source located at the very heart of the Video Star." A tiny, blinking white dot identifying the energy source appeared at the center of the holographic image, along with an intricate meshwork connecting it to the rest of the representation.

"Pretty small energy source," was Sheen's comment.

"It's big enough," Jimmy replied. "Goddard, magnify Sector Alpha Zero."

The dot swelled into a slowly rotating sphere that replaced the representation of the entire station. Cindy peered closely at the shapes inside the globe as it rotated before her. "Those two things inside look familiar," she said.

Jimmy nodded. "They should. Those are Meldar's matrix generators."

"What?" Libby stared at the image in disbelief. "That can't be! His old matrix generators were in his cufflinks. You know, the ones you gave to April." She looked at the hologram again. "Those things must be twenty feet tall!"

"Closer to thirty, actually. His old cufflinks were composed of a special crystalline material that was able to channel the raw energy of the cosmic source. Fortunately…" _Again 'fortunately'?_ he wondered. _Why does that word keep coming up?_ "Fortunately April still has those. These generators aren't anywhere near as efficient, and he had to construct something much larger to replace the originals. That's bad, but it gives us a chance to stop him."

"Ooh! Ooh! I get it!" Sheen called out in excitement. "You're going to get his old cufflinks from April, and offer to trade them for his new generators. Then, when he takes the new generators out and the station has no power, we attack!"

Libby and Cindy stared at each other and Cindy shrugged. "Don't look at me. He's your boyfriend?"

"Sheen, if we had the cufflinks, why wouldn't we just use them directly to stop Meldar?" asked Jimmy, trying to keep his temper in control.

"Hmm…" Sheen considered it. "It sounds like an old trick to me, but I suppose it might work."

Despite his best efforts Jimmy was too tired to keep from snapping, "We don't have any way to the get Meldar's old matrix generators!"

"Then why did you suggest using them?" Sheen answered reasonably. In aside to Carl, he added, "Boy, talk about crabby."

"So, how _do_ we stop Meldar?" Cindy asked, before Jimmy could do more than turn purple. "It sounds like you have a plan."

She was relieved when Jimmy's face returned to its normal shade. "Because everything is powered from the matrix generators, the Video Star will be powerless if we can destroy them. Full schematic, Goddard." The full representation of the colossal station reappeared. "The matrix generators channel the energy from the source, but can't control it." A myriad of blue lights appeared on the projection of the Video Star. "A highly integrated network of power regulators throughout the station is necessary to keep the station's power grid from overloading. The regulators are all coordinated and controlled through a single automated subsystem. If the feedback control loop can be broken by destroying the subsystem's thermal dissipation array -" Jimmy paused to point to a spot on the station's surface. "- the power system will overload, fusing the matrix generators and causing the station to blow up."

This was met with silence as the small group absorbed the news. "Correct me if I'm wrong," Cindy ventured, "but wasn't there something about not letting the poles of the matrix generators touch?"

Jimmy nodded vigorously. "Yes. If the poles touch while the generators are active the uncontrolled release of energy would annihilate not just the station, but everything within a couple hundred parsecs as well."

"And won't the generator poles have to touch to fuse?"

"Yes."

Cindy took a deep breath. "So, you're saying that blowing up this station is going to destroy Earth anyway? And a bunch of other planets?"

"No. Maybe not."

Even Carl blinked at that. "But you just said…"

"I said what would happen if the poles touch while the matrix generators are active. But these generators aren't like the old ones. Meldar had to build them first, and then bring them on-line once he finished them. There's a set of master cut-out relays in Sector Alpha Zero that will disconnect the generators from the cosmic source. If I can shut down one of the matrix generators before destroying the thermal dissipation arrays the blast radius from the active generator should be limited to a couple million miles." His voice lowered as he confirmed the implications of the statement. "But that means going back into the station…and whoever destroys the array won't be able to get clear of the station before it explodes."

Cindy blinked. "This is good news?"

"It's better than Earth being fried," Jimmy countered. "I'll transfer the cloaking circuitry from the Strato to one of the scooters. With that and the access code for the docking bay we departed from getting in shouldn't be a problem. And I can put together a torpedo that will take out the heat dissipators."

"It's not getting in that bothers me," commented Sheen. "It's getting out again."

"Hey, if anyone has any better ideas, feel free to tell me!" Jimmy snapped.

Sheen snorted in disgust. "Why do you always have to wait until times like this to ask for ideas? Why can't you ever ask something like 'Sheen, what should I do with this extra ice cream cone?', or 'Sheen, would you like half my allowance?', or 'Sheen, should we see what happens when we put a water balloon in the microwave?'"

"Are you through?" Libby asked him, sounding annoyed.

Sheen looked defeated. "Yeah, I'm done."

"Well, I'm not," Cindy declared. She stood up and marched over to Jimmy. "Look, Neutron, I'm all for saving the Earth. But we barely managed to get away from that thing once. You're telling us that we're supposed to go back, find some way to get inside, and blow up some cooling units while dodging who knows how many battle drones Meldar will have there just waiting for us. And even if – _if_ – we somehow manage to pull all that off, you're saying that we'll probably get blown up with that space station anyway?" Jimmy remained silent, not looking at her, and Cindy shook her head. "Are you completely insane? Or are you just trying to get us all killed?"

Jimmy looked up at this and gave her an odd look. "No. I've got it all worked out. When things get started, you have to be ready to pull out fast…just in case the plan doesn't work."

"Pull out?" Cindy looked far from satisfied by that. "And go where?"

That set Jimmy off. "Look, Vortex, will you give it a rest?" he snapped angrily. "Even you must see that I won't have a chance here. Why don't you just give me a break for once?"

"Easy, Jimmy," Libby called, attempting to soothe Jimmy as he stalked off. "She didn't mean anything. She just meant that if your plan doesn't work that…well, we won't really have any options."

Cindy, however, turned to Libby and looked stricken. "What did he just say?"

Carl thought about it. "He said for you to give him a break. But he says that a lot."

"No. Before that."

"What?" Libby thought about it before answering. "He said that you should see that he wouldn't have a choice about this."

"He said that he wouldn't have a _choice_?" Cindy repeated. "Are you sure that's what he said?"

Libby nodded. "Yeah, I'm sure. What else would he have said?" Cindy didn't reply and simply stared in the direction Jimmy had disappeared, looking worried.

Following Jimmy's abrupt departure Captain Valtor moved away from the small group to an isolated alcove, wrapped in his own thoughts. He was startled when he heard Princess Leama say, "It does not seem hopeful, does it?"

He stopped and turned, wondering how best to answer. He decided on the truth. "No, it doesn't."

"Do you think that Jimmy's plan could succeed?"

"Possibly," the captain replied. "I wish him luck."

Leama smiled. "Shouldn't you wish us all luck?"

"I would, if we were going."

That surprised the princess. "You won't help?"

"I would, if he asked it. But he plans on going alone." Captain Valtor's voice carried a tone of regret.

"Alone?" Princess Leama stiffened. "Why do you say that?"

"You must have noticed that he was very careful to refer to himself and the others separately."

"But why? Why would he do such a thing?"

That question touched close to home and Captain Valtor debated as to whether he should answer. As a creature of duty, however, he found that he could not refuse to reply. "Because he desires an honorable death in battle with his enemy. He blames himself for the loss of his comrades and feels that he must ensure the safety of his friends." He sighed. "I admire him for that. I, too, understand what he feels."

Leama nodded, thinking she understood. "Because of what happened to my father."

"Not just because of your father," Valtor replied. "I understand because I have failed utterly in my service as a member of the Royal Guard, in my responsibilities as its high captain, and in my obligations to Your Highness. I have decided that I will resign my commission in the Royal Guard and that, when Jimmy Neutron departs, I will offer to go with him to atone for my failures."

"What failures?" Leama challenged him. "How have you ever failed?"

As painful as it was to answer, the high captain did so. "By forsaking my sworn duty and calling to ensure the safety of Your Highness first and keep the interests of Felangie paramount. When I suspected that the robot Exjay Nine might betrayed Your Highness' presence and our position to the enemy I should have eliminated him without question, but did not. When the humans were under attack above the Video Star I should have abandoned them and escorted Your Highness to safety, but instead returned to assist them and jeopardized Your Highness' safety." He looked away. "Even were I not a member of the Royal Guard, to endanger Your Highness in such a manner is inexcusable. What must such conduct tell Your Highness about me?"

"That you aren't a drone."

"A drone?" Valtor repeated in puzzlement.

"Your duty to me," Princess Leama told him firmly, "is to act in my best interests. If blind obedience was all that the Royal Guard required, simple machines like those we fought on the Video Star would suffice. But I need more than just your obedience. I need your judgment as well…and desire your friendship."

"That would not be proper."

"Propriety has its place," the princess agreed. "But I have always considered you to be a true friend to my family."

Valtor's voice became bitter. "Would a true friend have ignored his duty and allowed your father to die?"

"Carl – Sir Wheezer – told me that a true friend is something that everyone needs, but that no one ever quite deserves. I did not wish you to remain in the Royal Guard in spite of your actions when my father died, but because of them. Whether you knew it or not, it was your respect for his decision that marked you as a true friend who understood what was truly important."

The mention of Carl gave Captain Valtor an opportunity to change the direction of the conversation. "Sir Wheezer," he scoffed. "Why do you tolerate him?"

"He talks to me," she replied simply. "Just as important, he lets me talk to him. You may question his lack of propriety and combat skills, but his loyalty and nobility of spirit is something that no one…_no one_…can question."

While Captain Valtor and Princess Leama were talking Cindy had followed Jimmy into a side chamber that he had fashioned into a makeshift lab. As he had indicated, he had removed the cloaking unit from the Strato XL and was affixing it to one of the scooters when Cindy showed up. Jimmy looked up briefly to see who it was before returning to his work with a grunt. "I don't have time to argue with you, Cindy. I have only 18 hours left to get everything set up before Meldar makes good on his threat to wipe out Earth."

"I'm not here to argue," Cindy assured him.

Jimmy didn't interrupt his work. "Then why are you here?"

"I'm not sure," she admitted. "I guess I was worried."

"You should be. We're in a pretty bad spot."

"I wasn't talking about everyone else. I meant about you."

Jimmy paused in tightening a final attachement screw before speaking. "Why me?"

"Just something I heard you say. Or maybe I misheard. The acoustics in here aren't the best so I wanted to be sure." She pulled her blanket around her against the chill in the cavern. "What did you mean when you said you won't have a chance?"

"What Libby said." Jimmy crawled from under the scooter and dusted off his hands and pants. "If this plan doesn't work, then we don't have a lot of options left." He pressed a newly-mounted button on the scooter and nodded in satisfaction as the vehicle silently shimmered out of existence. A second touch on the button caused it to reappeared.

Cindy shook her head viciously. "No, that's not what you meant. You said '_you_ won't have a chance', not '_we_ won't have a chance'. I may not have a photographic memory, but I know what I hear when I hear it."

Jimmy collected some loose parts and began test fitting them together. Not satisfied with the results, he located a file and began to smooth and shape the coupling end of one of the parts.

"You're going out there alone, aren't you?" Cindy said softly. When Jimmy gave no indication that he had heard her, she pressed the issue. "And you aren't planning on coming back, are you? That's what you meant. You're planning on taking on Meldar's space station alone and you don't think you have any chance of making it back."

Jimmy threw the file and part on the ground to confront Cindy. "Well, what if I am?" he asked defiantly. "Can you think of any other way of finishing this? Meldar isn't playing around. Earth is danger of being destroyed."

"Earth has been in danger before," Cindy countered, "but you never tried saving it alone. There was always someone else along to help you. I should know because I was there a couple times myself, remember?"

"It's better this way!" Jimmy insisted. "No one else gets hurt because of my stupidity. No one else has to pay for my mistakes. Not again. Never again."

"And we don't have any say in this?" Cindy swept her arm in a semicircle, indicating the rest of the cavern about them. "We're all here because we chose to come here, Neutron. You didn't drag us here. We aren't here for the great Jimmy Neutron and some harebrained idea of his, like marketing that stupid Toilet in a Briefcase or scented nasal floss. Exjay Nine and Tee didn't die because of you. It was because they understood what it was that you were trying to do. If you're going to blame someone, blame Libby and me for not coming sooner, or all those others that refused to come. But if you're going to blame them, why are you bothering to try saving them at all?"

In response Jimmy retrieved the file and part he had been working on. "I have to get this torpedo put together," was all he said. He returned to his purposeful filing, stifling a yawn as he did so and heedless of Cindy silently watching him for a few moments. Then, without another word, she turned and left him to his work.

In a dark and silent place, beyond time as space as he understood them, Tee floated peacefully. The last memories he possessed were a confusion of sights and sensations as his scooter spun into the surface of the vast space station, followed by a bright light that had bathed him and slowly drawn him towards it. _The light_, Tee recalled thinking. _Yes. Move into the light_. Then the light had faded, leaving him to drift, formless and weightless, through this dark and boundless void. In this place he was content, neither hot nor cold, and untroubled by any outside distractions.

Until now.

It had begun as a low rumble, simple, incoherent noise devoid of meaning or structure that seemed to come from all around him, and he stirred irritably at this unwanted intrusion into his peaceful existence. _Go away, fool_, he thought. _Don't mess with me._ Rather than cease, however, the noise persisted, and as it did so Tee became aware that it had formed itself into words addressed specifically to him. Still annoyed, but now aroused, Tee listened with increasing curiousity, trying to decipher the meaning and intent of the message.

"Tee," he heard the words say. "You are needed."

End of Chapter 26

Author's Notes.

This is undoubtedly the most difficult chapter I've had to write, and it went through about a half dozen rewrites before I settled on this particular version. I'm still not completely satisfied with it, but it was either this or delay finishing this story for who knows how much longer.


	27. A Few Kind Words

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 27:

Jimmy tightened the last fastener on the improvised torpedo and flopped tiredly onto his back with a sigh. Working on the device without the benefit of his lab had been a time-consuming challenge (much more so than simply transferring the cloaking circuitry from the Strato XL to one of the scooters) but he had managed, using a laser sword to cut and shape metal tubing to form the outer case, his wrist-comp's laser to trim and solder components, and various rocks to alternately hammer stubborn parts together and vent his frustration. Now that he was finished, he could rest for a short while before retrieving the scooter from the improvised hanger and setting out for the Video Star on what would very likely be the last of his many voyages into space.

A slight noise roused him and he opened one groggy eye to see what had caused it. To his mild surprise it was Cindy, fidgeting uneasily and looking pensive. Before he could say anything she began to speak, her voice sounding oddly muffled as though it was coming across a great distance. "I'm not going to argue about this," she said. "I guess I know how you feel, and why you think you have to do this, and there's no point trying to change your mind. But that's not really important right now. What's important is that this might be the last time we have to talk."

_About what?_ Jimmy wondered.

"We've known each other for while now, too long to let it all end without saying what we need to say. Lately I've been feelings about you, and even though you never really said anything I think that you feel the same way about me. For some reason there's always been a wall there. I don't know who put it there, or why, but my father told me that every wall has two sides. If you can't be strong enough to get over your side, then I will." The next words seemed to hang in mid-air as Cindy seemed to get them out by sheer force of will. "I love you, Jimmy. And I think you love me, too. I always thought that there was time to tell you later, but there isn't. So even if you can't hear me, I had to tell you." Jimmy felt the soft touch of lips against his cheek as Cindy turned to go. "Good-bye, Jimmy."

Jimmy woke with a start, touching his cheek as he did so. Even though no one was there he thought that he could still feel where Cindy had kissed him. But that made no sense: Cindy had never come near him while she had been talking. Had he dreamtd it all? He had had dreams of Cindy from time to time, with the dreams usually centering around getting even with her for the many humiliating pranks she had played on him. Lately, however…

He clambered to his feet, yawning mightily, and looked at his wrist-comp. From the time he estimated that he had been asleep for perhaps fifteen minutes, not enough time to do more than make him even more groggy than he had been before. Before leaving he had to attach the torpedo to the Strato XL, only ship among them capable of carrying the projectile. That would require the assistance of Sheen and Carl but was easy enough to do and not take more than a few minutes. A much more difficult task would be writing the final note he had to leave for Cindy. Of all the others with him she was the only one who had piloted his rocket before, and she was the logical choice to carry the makeshift weapon to its planned target. If all went well she might be able approach the space station and launch the torpedo, but Jimmy had little hope at this point of all going well. Once he had shut down one of the matrix generators inside the station he planned to make as much of a disturbance as he could to divert as much attention as possible away from the exterior of the station. Even should he succeed, his calculations told him that his rocket would not be fast enough escape the lethal effects of the exploding station. He had tried to devise some way of putting the Strato into a parking orbit around the station, somehow getting back to it after sabotaging the matrix generator, and completing the mission alone, but practicality had forced him to abandon the ideas. Shutting down one generator would cut the station's power in half and this situation would not go unnoticed. By the time he launched an attack run on the Video Star there was no guarantee that the generator would still be off-line. This suicide mission would require two people, and Cindy was the only logical choice.

So he had rejected it, deciding that Goddard would be his assistant. The navigation and targeting instructions would be easy to program into him, and Jimmy was sure – almost sure – that if Goddard initiated a main core implosion just before the shock wave from blast hit him that the components of his pet would survive and that Goddard would be able to reassemble again. The note to Cindy would explain where she could recover him using the Fire Drill. That was easy enough to say.

But how do you say good-bye for the last time?

Jimmy stared into space, his mind moving back through the years he had known Cindy. His photographic memory recalled each event with razor-sharp clarity as it drifted backwards, back to when…

It was the day of the Retroville Citywide Junior Spelling Bee, and little 5-year-old Jimmy fidgeted uncomfortably in his starched white shirt and tie. "Mommy, this collar itches," he complained, scratching his neck.

"I know, Sweetie," his mother answered. "But you want to look nice, don't you?"

"I wanna play with Goddard."

"Honey, you play with Goddard every day. It's time that you met other kids."

Jimmy sulked. "The other kids don't like me."

Judy Neutron sighed. Having a genius for a son was not easy, and always required large doses of understanding, diplomacy, and firmness. "Well, do you like crème brulee?" she asked.

"I don't know." Her son looked at her, puzzled. "What's that?"

"That's what I mean. Until you know what something is, you can't like it. And you can't like someone until you know who they are. Once the other kids know you, they'll like you."

Hope crept over Jimmy's face. "Really?"

"Really and truly." Jimmy's mother smiled at him.

"Now remember, Cindy," they heard a voice behind them say, "you'll win this contest easily. After all, you're better than any of these losers."

Jimmy turned to watch the pretty blonde girl named walk by as she answered, "Yes, Mother."

Jimmy looked up at his mother, puzzled. "Is that true?"

"No, Jimmy," Mrs. Neutron assured him. "You aren't a loser. Neither is anyone else here."

"No." Jimmy shook his head. "I mean, will I be better than the others if I win?"

Jimmy's mother shook her head in answer. "No, Jimmy. Just because you're better than someone at something, that doesn't make you better than them. Always remember that. Everyone matters."

"'Everyone matters'," Jimmy repeated to himself. "Okay. I'll remember."

"Good boy." Judy Neutron gave Jimmy a kiss on the cheek. "I'm going to find your father now. Good luck. And have fun."

Judy disappeared into the crowd and Jimmy sat down on his designated seat, waiting for the the competition to begin. The blond girl he had seen was sitting some distance away and noticed him looking at her. "Hello," Jimmy said. "My name is Jimmy."The girl simply sniffed and looked away.

The contestants in the competition gradually dwindled until only Jimmy and Cindy were left, battling on one word at a time. It was on the sixth elimination round that Cindy finally fell. "I'm sorry," the moderator announced, while Cindy looked shocked at his statement, "but that is incorrect. Jimmy, can you spell the word?"

"Karakul," Jimmy answered. "K-A-R-A-K-U-L. Karakul."

"That is absolutely correct," the moderator said as the audience cheered and applauded. "Jimmy Neutron is the winner of the Citywide Spelling Bee and advances to the regional competition!"

As the moderator crossed the stage to shake Jimmy's hand Mrs. Vortex leaped to her feet. "I object!" she challenged, waving a paperback dictionary in the air. "My Cynthia's spelling was correct!"

There were murmurs of confusion from the crowd and the judges held a hasty conference. At length they came to a decision and the head judge cleared his throat. "It is the decision of the judges," he pronounced, somewhat self-consciously, "that while Cynthia Vortex's spelling C-A-R-A-C-U-L is technically correct, the preferred variant is that given by James Neutron. As clearly stated in the official rules, this competition must and shall consider the preferred spelling to be the definitive one. The decision stands. James Neutron is the winner of the Citywide Junior Spelling Bee and is entitled to represent Retrovile in the regional competition."

"Well, I never!" Mrs. Vortex declared. She grabbed her daughter's hand and nearly dragged the small girl behind her as she left, fuming. "Come along, Cindy," she snapped as the two disappeared into the crowd. "The very idea of those judges letting that boy cheat you out of first place. We won't forget this, will we?"

"No, Mother," Jimmy heard Cindy say as the voices faded away. He stood there, feeling unhappy and barely noticing the people who stopped to congratulate him on his victory. He didn't look up even when he heard his parents speaking to him.

"What's up, Jim-Jam?" his father asked. He gave Jimmy a light punch on the shoulder. "Already thinking about the regionals?"

Jimmy's mother, however, was more familiar with her son's moods. "What's the matter, dear?"

"Nothing, I guess," he said. He looked up, his expression bleak. "Did I really win? I mean, _really_?"

"Well, of course you did," Hugh Neutron assured him. "The judges said so, didn't they? And everyone thinks you did."

Jimmy looked down again. "Not everyone. I think I should quit."

"Oh, honey," Mrs. Neutron sighed. She placed her finger under his chin and pulled his face up to look at hers. "Of course people will be disappointed when someone else wins. But that's not your fault."

"But she hates me now," Jimmy blubbered, on the verge of tears.

"Well, we'll just send her a pie," Jimmy's father suggested. "Maybe a nice peach pie. I mean, how can you possibly hate someone who sends you pie?"

"Jimmy," his mother said gently, "I know it's hard sometimes. I know you can't control what other people think, or how they feel about you. But that doesn't mean you shouldn't always do your best. Someday they'll understand just how special you really are. They'll all be happy that you tried, just like you did today."

"Even Cindy?"

"Especially Cindy." His mother smiled. "Someday"

Jimmy paused a moment to reflect on this. What sort of message could he write based on that first meeting with Cindy? _No matter what you think, I'm not a loser and I never was?_ He shook his head and let his thoughts drift back to the day…

Jimmy's 8th birthday had arrived and the Neutron household was decorated with the balloons, streamers, banners, and other traditional trappings of the day. Jimmy was at his seat of honor at the dining room table, with his father to his left, his mother to his right, and Goddard waiting patiently below, all but oblivious to the large cake bearing 8 brightly colored candles and the message _Happy Birthday Jimmy!_ before him.

"So, when are your friends coming by?" his father asked.

Jimmy's voice was barely audible. "They're not."

"They're not?" His mother's voice sounded shocked.

Jimmy shook his head. "Cindy Vortex is having a party at the lake. She invited the class at school yesterday."

Judy Neutron put her arm around her son to comfort him. "Oh, Sweetie," she soothed. "Maybe she didn't know."

"Yes, she did. I told the class last week about my birthday and told them they could all come." His voice dropped even lower in volume. "It's all right. They wouldn't have come anyway."

"I knew we should have had pie," his father declared.

Jimmy's mother shot Hugh a warning look before continuing. "Of course they would have," his mother assured him. "But do you know why they didn't?"

"Because they aren't my friends."

"No, that's not it." Judy Neutron waited for Jimmy to look up and smiled at him. "It's because friends are always there when it matters. They knew that it didn't really matter if they came today. There's you, and me, and your father…"

Goddard barked from under the table and Jimmy absently stroked the robotic canine's head. "And Goddard."

His mother nodded. "And Goddard. We're all together on this special day and that's all that really matters."

"And what about next year? Or the next?" Jimmy wanted to know. "Will they be here then?"

His mother pulled him close in a comforting hug. "If it really matters, they will. Whenever it really matters your friends will always be there for you." She released Jimmy and smiled brightly at his happier expression. "Now, how about blowing out those candles?" Her voice became suddenly stern as Jimmy eagerly began searching his pockets. "And no using your portable pneumo-blaster this year. Use your mouth like everyone else. I'm not cleaning frosting off the walls and ceiling _this_ year."

Again Jimmy paused to wonder about this particular memory. It had been the first year his parents had allowed him to attend Lindbergh Elementary and from the first day Cindy had gone out of her way to make his life miserable because he had been the smartest kid in school. Having a party at the lake on the day of his birthday was the sort of petty behavior he quickly learned to expect from Cindy, in addition to the verbal taunts and the never-ending practical jokes to which she subject him. That would be a message to leave behind for her. _I still made it despite everything you did._ But was that what he really wanted to say? The rough gray walls of the cavern around him seemed to change, morphing into the smooth, semi-finished walls of a dungeon on another world just as alien but far less friendly…

Jimmy waited alone in his cell, hunkering down miserably as he listened to his classmates in the adjoining dungeon chamber.

"So it was Neutron all along," he heard Nick say. "I mean, he got us into this."

"Hey, Jimmy!" someone else called. "Didn't your parents ever tell you not to talk to strangers?"

"That's rule number one," Jimmy heard another one say.

"Oh, come on you guys," Libby said, her voice growing in sarcasm, hostility, and volume as she went on. "Give him a break. Jimmy didn't mean to ruin our lives and get our parents eaten by a giant space monster!"

The angry accusations gave way to meaningless squabbling as his classmates began to argue amongst themselves. He couldn't blame them. Despite everything he knew that they were right, and that it was his fault that they were in this predicament. Try as he might, he couldn't keep from crying.

"Jimmy? You there?" He did not answer and Cindy went on. "Look, don't listen to them. They're just scared. Are you okay?"

"Yeah," he managed to answer, sniffling. "I'm fine."

"Don't be so hard on yourself. We'll get out of this," she told him, her voice uncharacteristically kind. Jimmy didn't reply, still trying unsuccessfully to fight back the tears, and Cindy pressed on. "Okay, so you made a mistake. Beating yourself up isn't going to fix anything." Her voice took on a more confiding tone. "You know, I was the smartest kid in school until you came along. And I admit that you know more about some things than I do. But I know one thing that you don't seem to get…and that's that we're never getting out of here without you." Her voice became artificially optimistic. "So, why don't you buck up, mister, and put that big brain of yours back to work? Nick can handle the fighting stuff, but first we have to get out of this cell."

"Umm…" Jimmy sniffled again. "Cindy? Why are…" He turned to face her. "Why are you being so nice to me?"

"Because there are a bunch of kids in here that need you." The next words surprised him, and may even have surprised Cindy. "And…I do, too."

As he returned to the present Jimmy realized, although he must have long known it, that it was that moment when things had changed - not just between himself and Cindy, but between himself and the other kids at school. All it had taken was a few kind words when he had needed them, and a friend when it really mattered. His mind suddenly clear, Jimmy reached for his pen and a scrap of paper to write,

_Cindy,_

_I know you may never understand why I have to do this. But thanks for always being there when it really mattered._

_Jimmy_

It wasn't much, he knew, but given the circumstances would have to do. He folded the paper, made his way unnoticed to the Fire Drill in the cavern's makeshift hanger, and placed the note inside the cockpit where he knew Cindy would find it. It was possible that Libby or someone else would find it as well, but he felt that Cindy would understand it as he meant it. That done, he started back towards his work area when something made him stop, feeling troubled. At first he was not sure what was amiss, but as he surveyed the assortment of vehicles there he realized what had caught his attention. Earlier he had moved the modified scooter meant to infiltrate the Video Star into this chamber. He had selected its exact spot so that he could get to it and away without attracting undue attention from the others.

The scooter was gone.

End of Chapter 27

Author's Notes:

Has it been over a month since I last worked on it? Sad but true…between the start of summer and the July 4th holiday I've found it extremely difficulty finding time to work on this. All I can do is apologize to those waiting for this story to continue and eventually conclude, and assure them that new chapters should come more quickly. They can hardly come any more slowly!


	28. The Measure of Friendship

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 28:

Not believing what he saw - or, more precisely, did not see – Jimmy stepped forward and groped the air where the scooter had been on the chance that the cloaking circuitry had somehow been activated. Finding nothing, he then proceeded to rack his sleep-deprived brain for answers. The scooter was not here, which meant that someone had moved it, taken it, or destroyed it. But who? And why?

The most obvious answer to Jimmy was also the most troubling. Bubo had been a spy and traitor, and Jimmy knew that it was entirely possible that there were more in their group. The scooter was absolutely essential to Jimmy's plan of shutting down the Video Star before it destroyed Earth. Whoever had perpetrated this might have known this and deliberately targeted the craft for that very reason. Jimmy furrowed his brow as he further explored this possibility. There had not been many in the group with whom he had shared his plan – Goddard, Cindy, Sheen, Libby, Carl, Princess Leama, and Captain Valtor – and it seemed inconceivable that any of them, particularly Goddard and the humans, would have committed such an act of sabotage. On the other hand, Captain Valtor had a particularly rigid code of honor that could have convinced him that Jimmy's plan, while in the best interests of Earth, might endanger the princess or Felangie. Then again, the princess might have felt it wiser to keep the group together. She may have wanted to stop him from coming to harm. Or maybe…

The thought gave him pause. Or maybe someone else had wanted to do so.

As his thinking grew clearer he realized that Cindy had been the only one to have realized what he had planned to do. He recalled the last thing she had told him. It was not like her to be open about her feelings, particularly to him, but she had seemed unusually candid then. She had also spoken as though she didn't expect to see him again. At the time he assumed that she understood that he almost certainly wouldn't be back on his solo mission. Now he read an entirely different and terrible meaning in her words. But that had all been a dream.

Or had it?

Without another thought he turned and raced to find her.

"I'm not saying that I _could_," Sheen was telling Libby. "I'm just saying that maybe I should _try_. I mean, all this has gotten me thinking. You never know when Earth is going to get blown up by some cranky space alien, so you need to take advantage of every minute while you can."

Libby let out a tired sigh. "Sheen, just drop it,"

"But why? Why shouldn't I?"

"Why shouldn't you join the school band? You want to know why?" Libby swung on him irritably and began counting off on her fingers. "First, you have no musical talent. Second, your taste in music is terrible. And finally, and most important…" She stopped counting and jabbed a finger at him, almost poking him in his nose. "…you don't even play an instrument!"

Sheen looked uncomfortable but refused to give up. "But like I was saying…"

"Sheen, for the last time, an MP3 player is not an instrument."

Jimmy burst upon them at that moment, bringing the discussion to a halt. "Where's Cindy?" he demanded, somewhat out of breath.

"Cindy?" Sheen looked confused. "I don't know. Why?"

Jimmy shook his head, not sure exactly how to put it. "I think she might be planning to do something incredibly stupid. I have to stop her before it's too late, assuming that it's not too late already."

Libby gave Jimmy an understanding smile and put a sympathetic hand on Jimmy's shoulder. "Look, Jimmy, we're all under a lot of stress right now, so if this is about her maybe wanting to get hold of Nick for a few kind words…"

"It's not about Nick!" Jimmy blurted out impatiently.

"It's not?" Sheen pricked up his ears. "You mean that there's someone else? This I have to hear."

"Me, too," agreed Libby, looking really interested. "What did you hear? Tell all, boy, and don't hesitate to dish the dirt."

"Will you two focus for a minute?" Jimmy nearly shouted. "When did you last see her?"

Sheen's brow furrowed as he concentrated. "I don't know. Fifteen minutes ago, maybe."

"More like twenty," corrected Libby with a frown. "Why? What's up?"

Jimmy did some rapid figuring, talking to himself. "Twenty minutes on the scooter. Okay, if I push the Strato I should be able to get to her before she reaches the station."

"Before who gets to the station?" asked Cindy, coming up behind him.

"Not now, Cindy!" Jimmy continued his calculations as he paced back and forth. "At full speed I should be able to drop her off her and still get back to the station before it reaches Earth. Yeah. That's sounds like a plan."

Cindy's patience was rapidly evaporating. "Drop who off?" she demanded.

"I said, 'Not now'! I'll talk with you later." Jimmy dashed off in the direction of the Strato XL as Sheen, Libby, and Cindy all gave each other blank looks. Cindy stared in the direction Jimmy had gone for a few seconds before turning on Sheen and Libby, her hands on her hips.

"Okay. What was that all about?" she asked. "That was weird, even for Nerd-tron."

Libby shrugged. "Beats me. I thought he was looking for you."

That only confused things more for Cindy. "For me? Why?"

"I dunno." Sheen hooked a thumb towards Jimmy as he burst back in on the group. "Why don't you ask him yourself?"

Jimmy stared at Cindy, his feelings divided equally between incredulity, relief, and irritation. "Cindy?"

"Last I checked," she replied sarcastically. "Why? Who should I be?"

"But I thought…I mean, didn't you…" Jimmy stammered, trying to absorb this new development. Failing to come to a rational conclusion he burst out, "What did you do with my scooter?"

"What did _I_ do with it?" Cindy looked annoyed. "So it's missing. What makes you think I know anything about it?"

Sheen nudged Libby. "Do you want to watch this or should we just catch a later show?"

Libby nodded wearily. "I'm not really in the mood." She and Sheen started to walk away when they caught Jimmy's next words.

"Well, you knew I needed it to infiltrate the Video Star!" Jimmy countered.

"Wait a minute," Libby interrupted. "What do you mean, you needed it to infiltrate the Video Star? When did we decide that?"

Cindy sniffed. "Apparently Neutron decided our opinions didn't matter and decided it himself."

"What?" Sheen stared in disbelief at Jimmy. "You were going to ditch us?"

Libby folded her arms and scowled. "Apparently."

"Hey, it's not like that!" Jimmy objected. "Trying to protect someone isn't ditching them?"

"But not being up front with your friends is, like, totally dissing them!" Libby snapped back.

"That's what I thought," Cindy frowned.

Now Libby turned on Cindy. "Wait a minute! You knew about this and you didn't say _anything_?"

"Well, what was I supposed to say?" Cindy protested. "'Neutron wants to save the world all by himself again'?" She snorted impatiently. "Big surprise there."

Libby was shaking her head. "Man, you think you know some people…"

"Boy, you can say that again," Sheen sulked.

"I just want to know where my scooter is!" Jimmy shouted.

The commotion had attracted the attention of Leama, who came over with Captain Valtor. "Is there a problem here?" she asked.

The only answer was a confused babble of accusation and counter-accusations. The princess, unsure of how to proceed, waited uncomfortably for the furor to subside, but Captain Valtor took a more direct approach. He pounded a massive fist against a wall and thundered, "Silence!" When the clamoring ceased he frowned and surveyed the Earth children. "What is the cause of all this?"

Jimmy spoke up. "Someone took the scooter I outfitted with the inviso-shield from the Strato XL. Without it there's no way to get aboard the Video Star without being spotted." He spread his hands in despair. "The plan to shut down the space station can't possibly succeed without it."

"You think that one of your friends took it?" asked Leama. "If they did, how could they still be here?"

"I don't know," Jimmy answered. "Maybe they didn't take it. Maybe they just got rid of it by launching it out into space or something."

"But why?" pressed Captain Valtor. "Why would they endanger your world by doing so?" The others stared at Jimmy, as though daring him to come up with a reason.

"I know it doesn't make sense," Jimmy admitted. He began to pace again, a sure sign that he was thinking deeply about it. "I mean, they had nothing to gain by doing so, other than maybe trying to keep me from going off alone. It's possible that there's another spy among us. But not everyone knew about my plan. Let's see…" Jimmy stopped pacing and began counting on his fingers. "There was me…and Cindy…"

"And Sheen," added Cindy.

"And Love Muffin," Sheen offered helpfully.

Libby glared at him. "Say it right!"

"Fine!" Sheen capitulated. "Libby was there, too."

Libby nodded. "And Lee."

"And Captain Valtor as well," concluded the princess.

"So that's everyone. Except for…" Jimmy suddenly looked apprehensive. "Where's Carl?" he demanded.

"Carl?" Leama appeared shocked. "I don't know. He was sitting with me during your presentation, but afterwards I was speaking with Captain Valtor. I haven't seen him since."

Cindy read Jimmy's worried look and shook her head. "No way. You don't really think that Carl would…"

"I'm not sure," Jimmy countered, sounding as concerned as he felt. "But he's done some odd things before when he felt he had to."

Libby voiced the questions for everyone. "But why this? And why now?"

It was the captain's turn to look concerned. "It may have been my fault," he confessed.

"Yours? How so?" asked Leama.

Even though the princess' tone had been gentle, the words came with difficulty for the high captain. "Throughout this entire affair I have berated Sir Wheezer for failing in his duty as a one of the Royal Guard, and for not measuring up to the high standards expected of him. He may have heard me mention that Jimmy Neutron did not intend to return from his mission."

"What!" Sheen shrieked. "You knew about that too?" Libby quickly shushed him, wanting to hear the rest of Valtor's explanation.

"If so, his personal sense of honor may have compelled him to take on the mission himself and spare his friend," Captain Valtor continued. "It was, after all, my intent to save my own honor by accompany Jimmy Neutron on his last mission."

"I still can't believe that Carl would do such a thing," Cindy muttered, almost to herself.

"I can," Princess Leama replied. "But what can we do now?"

Everyone looked at Jimmy for an answer. "I don't have much choice," he told them. "It's too late to reach Carl and get him back before Meldar attacks Earth. There's not much of a chance, but I have to assume that he'll somehow get into the station and shut down the matrix generator. I'll have to proceed with the attack on the station as planned right away. As slim as it is, it's the only hope."

"And what's with the 'I' business again?" Libby asked. "You think that we're just going to stand by and watch you go off on this thing on your own?"

Sheen nodded vigorously. "Carl is our friend, too, you know."

"Guys, please," Jimmy pleaded. "I've already lost two friends because of my mistakes. I don't want to lose any more."

Cindy headed towards the chamber in which the Fire Drill was waiting. "Then I guess you'd better not make any more mistakes," she called back. "And leaving without us would be the worst one ever."

Elsewhere, Tee hurled himself against a transparent partition, attempting to break through and get to the small metallic sphere hovering on the other side. The clear material yielded slightly before springing back and repulsing the infuriated reptilian's attack. Baffled in his attempt, Tee shook his fist and bellowed, "Let me out of here, you hear? If I get my hands on you I'll squish you good. Squish you like a bug!"

Bubo's reply was devoid of emotion. "It would be most illogical of me to release you if your intent is to squish me like a bug."

Tee growled. "Then what do you want from me? What am I doing here? The last I remember I was fighting outside Meldar's space station."

"Yes," Bubo answered. "You were. But as I indicated, you are needed. That is why I brought you here with a tractor beam just before your craft impacted on the surface of the station. Since then you have been in regenerative stasis, recovering from your exposure to vacuum following the loss of your vehicle's environmental field."

"I don't believe you," Tee answered. "Need me? Need me for what, fool?"

"I require…elucidation," the robot replied. When Tee looked puzzled, Bubo tried again. "There are some concepts that I do not understand."

"There's a lot of things you don't understand."

Tee's sarcasm was lost on Bubo. "I have studied your history from the record banks. You once were allied with King Goobot of Yolkus and the entity known as the Junkman. You sought with them to destroy the human known as Jimmy Neutron and his associates. But you were willing to die to assist them. Why?"

"He's my friend," Tee answered. "You look out for friends. That's what friends do."

Bubo considered this. "But weren't King Goobot and the Junkman your friends?"

"Friends?" Tee made a disgusted noise. "They weren't my friends. They were just some chumps looking out for themselves, like I used to be until I found some real friends. Friends like Sheen, and Carl, and Jimmy." His voice seemed to come from far away, as though he were speaking to someone not there. "They're friends you can count on, because you know you always matter to them, no matter where you are, or where they are."

"Friends are important?"

"They're the most important things in this world, fool. If you had any, you'd know that." Tee began beating against the clear partition again. "Now what do you want me for? It's not to answer these chump questions, is it?"

"I needed the answers," Bubo replied. "But you are correct. I need you for something else."

Tee became defiant. "Whatever it is, I won't do it."

"You must. I cannot do it alone."

"That's your problem, fool." Tee turned away from Bubo, his arms folded in utter denial.

To Tee's surprise Bubo's voice took on an almost pleading tone. "I cannot force you. But this is important to me. Exjay Nine is damaged. I have the knowledge to repair him, but lack the physical capabilities to do so. I need you to effect the repairs."

Intrigued in spite of himself, Tee turned to face Bubo again. "Why not just take him to the repair shop or have some other robots fix him?"

"His repairs would be recorded in the station's information systems," Bubo explained. "Lord Versile has ordered that his memory be deconstructed. If it was learned that I disobeyed that order, or rescued you in doing so, he would destroy both Exjay Nine and myself, and you as well."

"So you did all this because you wanted to fix Exjay Nine?" Tee shook his head in disbelief. "Why? Have your circuits gone bad?"

"Possibly," the small robot admitted. "But I think he may be my friend."

That was something to Tee to think about. Jimmy had said some things on Mos Slimey that had not made a lot of sense to Tee at the time, including trying to find and protect the traitorous mechanoid that drifted before him when they were all in danger. "Maybe so," Tee conceded. "But what should I help you after what you did to us?"

"I cannot offer any logical reason," Bubo replied. "But Exjay Nine had a convincing argument for organics that I never fully understood."

"And what was that?"

Bubo seemed to shrug. "Please."

In the main monitoring center Lord Versile scanned bank after bank of station's storage arrays. He had ordered Bubo to deconstruct the memory of the robot and provide the details of the contents of the data disk as soon as the information had been recovered. Thus far no information had been logged into any of the vast information banks, although the procedure should have been finished long ago. In addition, he was unable to locate the small robot anywhere within the station even though the built-in transponders should have logged all of Bubo's movements and activities within the Video Star. It was all most curious. It was as though the robot had very recently ceased to exist in the station's monitoring systems, something that was possible only if Bubo had left the station or, even more unthinkable, disabled the autonomic transponding subprocesses within his operating system.

"Lord Versile," a drone manning one of the many information consoles called.

The dark lord swept across the chamber to stand next to the reporting drone. "Report," he rasped.

"There is a vehicle approaching the station. It appears to be following a pre-programmed course to one of the docking bays."

Lord Versile bent down to scrutinize the display screen. "Access code?"

"It has been recently superseded by the security system, but is a valid pattern."

"An older code is no cause for concern," Lord Versile decided, turning to go. "It is most likely a communications probe returning from a extended mission."

"Possibly, my lord," the drone agreed. "But the signal is extremely weak. The vehicle appears to be cloaked."

The dark shape swirled around to re-examine the screen. "Indeed?"

"Yes, my lord." A metallic hand hovered over a button. "Shall I deny access and dispatch sentries to destroy the approaching craft?"

Lord Versile studied the faint speck drifting slowly towards the center of the illuminated screen. "No," he decided at last. "Permit it to land. Take no action without my direct authorization."

"By your command," the drone replied. It touched a button next to a blinking light, activatin ghte automated response systems that granted permission for the craft to continue on course and dock at the designated bay. "Shall I notify the Chairman or his assistant of the vehicle's arrival?"

"No." Lord Versile rumbled as he headed towards the exit. "I will deal with this." He swept around to face the drone just as the doors closed. "Alone."

End of Chapter 28


	29. For Whom the Bell Tolls

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 29:

Despite Cindy's frequent and often strident claims to the contrary, Jimmy could see the obvious. Realizing that his plan to leave his friend behind was no longer an option, he used what time he had left to prepare their ships for the upcoming encounter with the Video Star. This consisted primarily of mounting an energy rifle to the frame of each spacecraft and rigging a rudimentary firing control to the craft's steering control. He did not have time to rig any sort of targeting control, but his handiwork made such a feature unnecessary. The attitude of the ship itself determined the target: whatever it was pointed at, the weapon would hit. He spent a little extra time on the Fire Drill, as its size and structure permitted for some additional features.

"Aren't you finished yet, Neutron?" Cindy asked impatiently. "I thought you were in a hurry."

Jimmy, sweating over completing a critical junction beneath the ship, grunted in annoyance. "I was, Vortex. But you're the one who wanted to come along, remember?"

That was undoubtedly true, and Cindy felt properly chastened. "What is that you're working on, anyway?"

"A targeting alert system, if you must know."

Cindy squatted down and tried to see what Jimmy was doing. "A what?"

"A targeting alert system." Jimmy completed his work and slid out from under the Fire Drill to sit up and wipe the perspiration from his face with the back of his hand. "Basically it's just an audio alert that lets you know when someone has you targeted with his weapons system. If you hear a loud, steady tone, he has you in target lock and is going to fire. If that happens…"

"…try to be somewhere else?" she finished.

Jimmy nodded. "Right."

The two stared at each other for a moment and then down at the ground. "Did you ever think it would come to this?" Cindy finally asked.

Jimmy thought it over. "You mean, fighting Meldar Prime and that space station of his?"

"No. I mean, us being billions of miles from home without anyone we know really knowing where we are or what we're doing. Maybe never getting the chance to see them again."

"Oh." Jimmy shook his head. "No. Not really. I always expected I'd come back."

"Me, too. That's why I never told my parents good-bye. I didn't even…" There was a catch in Cindy's voice and she had to wait before going on. "I didn't even get a chance to tell Humphrey I was leaving. I know it's silly, but I can't help wondering if he wonders where I am or whether he even misses me. People can usually figure out these kind of things, but pets can't. We always assume that we'll be there for them when they need us and that there's no need to say what we really need to say." She looked Jimmy, her expression bleak. "Does that make sense?"

Jimmy, unfortunately, missed her point completely. "I guess so. Fortunately Goddard always knows where I am as long as I'm wearing my wrist-comp." He sighed. "But I do wish I'd gotten a chance to tell Betty -"

The next thing he knew Jimmy was flat on his back where Cindy had pushed him, staring up at the ceiling and hearing her mutter, "Jerk" as she stalked off. As he wondered what had happened Sheen's face came into view, staring down at him, clucking his tongue and shaking his head. "Bad move, Jimmy," he commented as he helped Jimmy to his feet.

"What was that all about?" Jimmy asked, dusting himself off.

Sheen threw an arm around Jimmy's shoulders, assuming the role of older and wiser brother. "Jimmy, I feel that there are some things I should pass on to you. And there are three things in particular that you must never, _ever_ do." His expression became almost frighteningly intense. "_Ever_."

"Okay, okay," Jimmy assured him, pushing Sheen away. "What are they?"

Sheen ticked off his fingers. "One – you never look at another girl when you're with a girl. Two – you never mention another girl when you're with a girl. And three – and most important – you never, ever call a girl by some other girl's name." He rubbed his jaw, wincing at a painful memory. "Trust me."

Jimmy wasn't totally convinced. "And what makes you an expert on girls all of a sudden?"

"Oh, Libby has been teaching me," Sheen replied brightly. "She says that a just few more years and she'll have me whipped into shape."

'_Whipped' is right_, Jimmy thought. But all he said was, "What other girls do you know?"

Sheen looked somewhat sheepish. "Well…other girls, Ultra Lord…it's all the same, really. Just avoid mentioning or paying attention to anyone or anything else when you're with Cindy and you'll do fine."

"Right." Jimmy looked around at the collection of space vehicles and decided that he'd done everything he could. "I guess I'm finished here. Let's round up the others and get started. I figure that if we gun it we should catch up with the Video Star just about the time it crosses the orbit of Jupiter. Let's hope we can get those matrix generators shut down and deactivate Meldar's access to that cosmic source."

Sheen and Jimmy headed to the main chamber of the cavern to collect Cindy, Libby, and Goddard and cover last minute details. To Jimmy's surprise the Felangians were there as well, assembled in two orderly rows and standing stiffly at attention with Princess Leama and Captain Valtor at their head. Captain Valtor saluted smartly as Jimmy approached. "The Royal Guard of Felangie stand ready to accompany you," he announced.

"Accompany me?" Jimmy asked, somewhat perplexed.

"Accompany _us_," corrected Libby.

"I don't understand," Jimmy said in confusion. "This mission is about saving Earth. I thought you'd want to head to Felangie and help out there."

"That was my plan," Captain Valtor answered. "I was going to accompany you, and have the others proceed to Felangie as you indicated. But Her Highness refused to go, and the others would not abandon her."

"Sir Wheezer was a member of the guard," Princess Leama explained. "More than that, he is a friend. We can not leave him, any more than you can."

"'The loss of one is a loss to all'," quoted Lieutenant Grikmar, "as Her Highness' father said."

"Yes," the princess nodded, recalling her father's words. "'The loss of one is a loss to all'."

"John Donne," Jimmy muttered to himself.

Jimmy had not meant for anyone to hear him, but the princess had heard and was curious. "What was that?"

"Don't ask him," Cindy advised Leama. "It just gives him another chance to show off."

Jimmy had not intended to say anything, but Cindy's attitude had pushed the right buttons. "There's a passage from a work called _Devotions on Emergent Occasions_ by a 17th-century Earth poet named John Donne that says pretty muchg the same thing that your father did. It goes, _'No man is an island, entire of itself; every man is a piece of the continent, a part of the main. If a clod be washed away by the sea, Europe is the less, as well as if a promontory were, as well as if a manor of thy friend's or of thine own were: any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind, and therefore never send to know for whom the bell tolls; it tolls for thee'_."

Although it was new to the others Cindy had heard the passage before. She had never really given it much thought, it having been required for a long-forgotten assignment, but it was a reminder to her and the others of why they were here about to risk all to stop Meldar's mad scheme. One person or a planet, friend or stranger, organic or mechanical, native or off-worlder - no one could be ignored. In the grand unity of things, everyone mattered.

Captain Valtor stepped forward and turned to address the body of the Guard. "You know what we are about to face," he announced. "We may doubt whether we shall return, but we cannot doubt the reasons we go. Let us never forget those reasons - for our homes, for our families, for our comrades, and for our honor. And let the Universe never forget that on this, this glorious day, that Felangie was there." This was met by cheers of approval from the Royal Guard and Captain Valtor waited for the outburst to subside before continuing. "Now to your vehicles," he ordered. "And remember that the eyes of history are upon you."

"And may the source be with us!" added Sheen exuberantly. As everyone paused on the way to his or her transport to stare at him Sheen's elation faded. "What?" he demanded. "Someone had to say it!"

The delicate instruments seemed almost like doll's toys in Tee's large hands, but he manipulated them with surprising skill. "Don't know why I'm doing this," he grumbled as he worked. "I ain't no repairman."

"Because you promised you would," Bubo piped up. The small globe hovered anxiously over Tee's shoulder, supervising the reptilian's every move carefully. "Be sure that you reattach the control lines to the effector servos before you connect the power lines."

"I heard you the first time, cue ball," Tee grunted. "And even if I didn't I pity the fool that didn't know that already." He peered at the tangle of wires and mechanics inside Exjay Nine's chest cavity and shook his head. "Man, they really made a mess of things in here. These tools aren't going to be enough to fix everything. And what we can fix may not be enough to bring Exjay Nine back on line."

Bubo sounded almost petulant, like a 6-yea-old being told he could't have dessert. "But you said you'd help me."

Tee swung on the small robot, too annoyed to hold his feeling in any longer. "Listen, here," he snapped. "I ain't doing this for you, promise or no promise. I'm doing this for Exjay Nine. He was real friend and he proved it. He deserves my help." He turned back to the repairs, muttering in disgust. "You wouldn't know what being a friend was if someone smacked you upside your CPU with a dictionary."

"'Friend'," Bubo began quoting. "Common noun. An associate having -"

"Oh, can that," Tee barked. "I'm not talking about definitions. Words are cheap. It's actions that matter in friendship."

The small robot seemed to consider this. "What sort of actions?"

"Being there when someone really needs you, for one. Exjay Nine was like that. You could always count on him when it mattered."

"My floating point unit can process 6.5 quadrillion quadruple-precision calculations per second," Bubo countered.

Tee was almost amused by that. "I don't mean that kind of counting, cue ball. I mean you can depend on real friends, like Sheen, and Jimmy, and Exjay Nine, to do the right thing for you. And they can depend on you to do the same." He paused to concentrate on fusing a particularly delicate connection before going on. "I don't suppose you ever did anything like that."

"I am programmed to follow orders. Lord Versile could always depend upon my following his instructions."

"You mean like now?" Tee gestured towards Exjay Nine's inert form. "I thought he told you to rip out Exjay Nine's memory."

"Yes, but…" Bubo's logic circuits attempted to resolve this conundrum. "Would not Exjay Nine be of far greater value as an intact and functioning unit? Is that not following my greater duty to be of service to Lord Versile more than obeying that one specific command?" The robot's tone became more certain. "Yes. I am following my primary programming in a correct and logical manner."

"No, you're just rationalizing. Exjay Nine was your friend and even though you won't admit it you want to be his. You just don't know how to do that. I was like that, once."

Bubo had no face to speak of, but somehow assumed an expression of interest nonetheless. "You were?"

"Yes. Zix, Travoltron, and me. We thought that we had to be evil to get what we wanted. The first time we met Sheen and his friends we tried to steal their asterubies. Then we tried to catch and sell them when their whole town got accidentally shrunk. Finally we teamed up with a bunch of other bad guys like the Junkman and King Goobot to try and get even with Jimmy. That's when I found out that hanging around those kind of people didn't go nowhere and that we didn't have to be evil. Since then those kids have been my best friends."

"What about Zix and Travoltron? I thought they were your friends."

Tee sighed. "I thought so, too. I guess maybe it was harder for them to stay good than it was for me."  
"If you are their friend," Bubo suggested, "shouldn't you be with them? I thought you said that friends could depend on friends."

"I said that friends could depend on friends to do the right thing. That doesn't mean you just automatically do what they want you to do, or go along with them when they make bad decisions. That's a one-way ticket to a dead end."

Bubo tried to understand, but still could not fully comprehend what Tee was saying. "But how do you know when you should do what they want, and when you shouldn't?"

Tee shook his head. "That's the hardest thing about being a friend. But you hope you have other friends to help with you those kind of decisions." He completed the last of this set of connections and straightened up. "Okay, cue ball. What's next?"

Carl warily dismounted from the cloaked scooter and cautiously surveyed the large docking bay. Aside from the Felangian shuttle pod that had been left behind the chamber appeared empty. For a moment Carl debated whether or not to use the pod's restroom facility before continuing on as his departure from the others had been understandably rushed. He had brought some fruit chewies and a small canister of water with him, along with Jimmy's laser sword. He would have preferred to have brought a long-range weapon, but the energy rifles had all been in the possession of or within view of the others. Given the circumstances taking the sword while Jimmy was dozing seemed a safer and more practical choice. Other factors, although he had not been consciously aware of them, were that the rifles were heavier than he liked and that he was a terrible shot. In any case, he reminded himself, he was not here to fight. If the luck that had gotten him this far held yp, he would not have to use a weapon of any kind.

Luck, however, had seemed to desert him. As Carl began to creep across the vast expanse of floor between him and the hatchway opposite him a dark form detached itself from the shadow of the shuttle pod. Like a shadow of malevolence, it interposed itself between Carl and his destination, causing the boy to freeze in his tracks. A rasping noise filled and echoed through the docking bay.

"Fortune is with you, young one," a smooth but coldly sinister voice intoned as it moved towards Carl, "but you are not a Guardsman yet." Carl said nothing, but began to backpedal away from the intimidating figure of Lord Versile as it advanced. "I had expected Captain Valtor, or perhaps your friend Neutron to have come. But this will suit my plans just as well." As the echoing rasp continued the dark lord stopped and looked about him in irritation. "What is that noise?"

"What? Oh." Carl looked sheepish. "I guess it's me," he confessed between gasps. "When I get agitated my asthma acts up and I get sort of wheezy."

"Well, stop it," Versile commanded. "It's very distracting."

Carl fumbled for his inhaler and took two deep breaths from it. The noise abated as Carl's breathing returned to normal. "I'm sorry. What were you saying?"

"I said that you will fulfill my plans. I had hoped for one of the Royal Guard, but you will do as well for a beginning."

"Hey, I'm a member of the Royal Guard," Carl objected. "I have a uniform and everything. Princess Leama even gave me a medal to put on it for special occasions."

"Impressive," Lord Versile admitted, resuming his approach. "I admit that I was unaware of that fact. If that is true, then your destiny truly lies with me."

Carl didn't like the sound of that, especially in the ominous tone that the dark lord had used, and continued to back away. "Well, Miss Fowl says that my destiny is to raise llamas but I think that maybe Jimmy's mom and I might…" His retreat was cut short when he backed into a metal bulkhead. Lord Versile simply shook his head as Carl realized that he was trapped.

"All too easy," Versile said, sounding almost disappointed. "Perhaps I have overestimated your potential." He reached for Carl with a powerful gauntlet-clad hand, but as he leaned forward Carl sprayed most of the remaining contents of the inhaler still in his hand onto his adversary's mask. The liquid thoroughly obscured Lord Versile's view and surrounded his head with a fog, causing Versile to instinctively raise his hands to clear the lenses of his mask. Carl, experienced to dealing with bullies, took advantage of his opponent's moment of distraction to nimbly scurry around Lord Versile and scurry towards the exit. By the time the dark lord could see again, Carl was gone. With an almost imperceptible, fatalistic shrug Lord Versile strode towards the open hatchway, intent on his pursuit. Each step he took was nearly a meter long, but betrayed no sense of urgency. Lord Versile was in no hurry.

There was nowhere for Carl to go.

End of Chapter 29


	30. The Gathering Storm

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 30:

Carl hurried through the corridors of the space station as fast as his girth and stamina allowed, wishing that his shoes didn't making such a horrible racket. He saw no one during his hasty passage but the empty corridors he found didn't comfort him in the least. No matter which way he went he felt that someone was watching him closely and more than once he whirled around, certain that someone was right behind him, only to find no one there. While he had only a vague idea of his destination and no clue as to how to get there he pressed on, driven onward by stark terror. At last, overcome by sheer exhaustion, he sought refuge in a darkened alcove and slumped against a bulkhead. He gasped for breath and was fumbling for his nearly-empty inhaler when a voice just behind made him made him jump.

"You cannot hide from me forever."

There was no one there, but Carl backed away, trembling with fright. "Go away," he whispered, his voice hoarse with fear. "Leave me alone."

"I will find you. And in the end, you will join me."

"I'll never join you!" Carl screamed.

"It is your destiny. You cannot hope to betray your true fate."

"I don't care what that!" Carl drew a shaky breath. "I'll never betray my friends!"

"You have already betrayed them, by returning here," the voice continued mercilessly. "Fate has brought you here to me for a greater purpose. Together we will fulfill that purpose." Carl bolted from the alcove and hurried along the corridor to escape, covering his ears in a vain attempt to block the insistent voice that seemed to follow him. "It is your destiny."

Carl had not been the only one to hear the voice. Tee, in the midst of attempting to reboot Exjay Nine, looked about him for the unseen source of the words. "What was that?" he demanded. "I didn't know there were speakers in this room."

"There aren't." Bubo slowly revolved to better assess the situation. "It's Lord Versile," he concluded. "He's using the station to speak with someone."

"Use the station?" Tee looked confused. "Speak to someone? Who?"

"I don't know," Bubo admitted. "Apparently one of your friends has come back to the station, although I have no idea why they would do so after getting away."

Tee gave a disgusted snort as he flipped several tiny switches in Exjay Nine's torso. "I'll tell you why, Cue Ball. To kick Meldar's sorry behind, that's why. And if it is one of my friends, I pity the fool that gets in the way."

"I think you overestimate your friend's chances," Bubo replied. "Lord Versile will stop them."

"We'll see about that. Once we get Exjay Nine up and running, I've got a score to settle with that chump myself. I'll take him down alone if I have to. I'll tear him limb from limb. I'll kill that fool if I get the chance."

The small sphere took an unusually long time to answer, in an uncharacteristically quiet tone. "You can't kill him."

"What?" Tee stopped his repairs to glare at Bubo. "What do you mean by that?"

"I mean," Bubo repeated with exaggerated enunciation, "that you…can't…kill…him."

"How's that?" The reptilian considered this. "You saying that you're going to stop me?" He pushed his face within inches of Bubo. "Hmm? Hmm?"

"No."

"Then are you saying that he's immortal or something?" Tee tried again.

"No."

Tee lost all patience. "Then what are you saying, fool?" he snarled, shaking a massive fist at Bubo.

"I'm saying that he can't be killed," Bubo answered. "Lord Versile is a robot."

In the master control room Meldar had also heard the voice in the midst of preparing for the day's big broadcast of the destruction of Earth. "Who said that?"

The Video Star's communication drones consulted their instrumentation panels before responding. "Unknown, sir," the chief drone reported. "It does not appear to have originated from any of the communication terminals on the station."

This didn't satisfy Meldar. "Then what was it? Was it a malfunction?"

"Insufficient data," the drone answered. "The station systems all appear to be functioning correctly."

"That's not good enough," snapped Meldar. "We're going live in -" He glanced at one of the chronometers displaying the local time on dozens of worlds. "- less than 30 standard timeparts, and someone or something is broadcasting unauthorized messages on my station?" Meldar's voice became a half-octave more shrill and he floated back and forth and clenched his fists. "_On my station?_"

The learning capabilities of the station drones were rudimentary at best, but it had been enough for them to understand that Meldar's current mood was extremely dangerous. "Although I am unable to locate the origin of source," the chief drone hastened to report, "I have been able to identify the originator of the message. The audio pattern matches that of Lord Versile."

Meldar ceased his tirade as bewilderment replaced rage. "Lord Versile? Why would he be transmitting something? And who is he communicating with? Did the station logs report anyone arriving at the station?"

"No, sir," was the chief drone's answer. "I have no data on with whom Lord Versile might be communicating. But the station's sensor indicate that he appears to be heading towards Sector Alpha Zero."

This only baffled Meldar more, which in turn increased his irritation. "Well," he decided, "if we can't guess what it is that he's doing, then I suppose we should ask him ourselves."

"Yes, sir." The drone reached for a switch to open a communications channel. "I will summon him here at once."

"Countermand that," snapped Meldar. "I think that maybe a face-to-face dialog would be more productive. Grod!" he called.

The large automaton had been standing on one side of the control room, silent and dormant. At Meldar's shout Grod stirred to life, swiveling his armored cranial turret to bring two glowing red photoreceptors to bear on his master. "Your orders?" the drone's vocal synthesizer grated.

"It seems that there's something of interest to Lord Versile in Sector Alpha-Zero," Meldar informed the metallic behemoth. His voice sharpened to a sinister edge. "Deal with it."

Grod moved without question towards the exit, making the deck of the control room shudder slightly with each deliberate step. "By your command."

Carl continued his headlong flight deeper into the station, pausing now and again to gasp for breath and try to regain his bearings. The Video Star was a huge sphere, and Sector Alpha-Zero, he knew, was at its center, but that wasn't much help to him. The passageways all looked much the same to him and gave no clues as to their actual orientation within the vast space station. He might be in a radial corridor heading towards (or away from) the center of the Video Star, or just as easily in one of the endless tunnels that circled the massive sphere. Even had he known the path to take when he first arrived, he had long lost track of all the twists and turns he had taken in his frantic attempts to escape the persistent presence of Lord Versile's voice. Oddly, although he did not realize it, there had not been many decisions to make. After fleeing from Lord Versile there had always been an open hatchway among the hundreds he encounered to dart through, and his panic had not given him the luxury to try any of the closed ones. Despite the fear and fatigue of the chase, however, he still felt a dim sense of curiosity as to why his enemy wanted him and was pursuing him so earnestly.

But it never occurred to him that the malevolent voice was herding him towards a specific destination.

The voice returned, startling Carl out of his stupor. "You have done well to elude me this long."

"Yeah, well, I've had a lot of practice," Carl replied in a quavering voice. He was still afraid, but not filled with the paralyzing terror that had first possessed him on encountering Lord Versile. The unrelenting danger had numbed his emotions almost into indifference. And the voice hadn't actually hurt him. "What with Butch, and Terry, and…well, pretty much everyone in school up to a couple years ago I turned into a real good hider."

"Captain Valtor has taught you well." The voice seemed to draw closer to him and Carl instinctively backed away from it further down the passageway he was in. "You've controlled your fear. Now, accept your destiny."

"Um...I don't think I can do that." Carl continued to edge backwards, unaware of that one of the many doors lining the passage had yawned noiselessly noiselessly behind him. "I mean, I've kind of got things to do right now and I really don't know you all that well so maybe you can get somebody else to help you out."

"I'm afraid that isn't possible." A black gauntlet short forth from the hatchway to seize Carl by the back of his collar. A tall cloaked figure, like a spectre of evil, emerged from the darkened recesses as it lifted Carl's hefty frame from the deck as easily as if he were weightless. Carl's fear returned full force as he stared into the glassy lenses of Lord Versile's mask. "There is no one else."

Carl squirmed uselessly in the dark lord's grip, vaguely resembling a plump kitten, as Lord Versile carried him through the hatchway and down another of the seemingly innumerable passageways. "But why me?" he whimpered. "I'm not good at sports and I'm not really good at being evil or hurting people or…" He hesistated as he reconsidered. "Well, there was that one time when I was a vampire but that wasn't really my fault. You don't really want me."

"I didn't want you," Lord Versile rumbled. "I wanted the Royal Guard and the princess, but you and your friends freed them before I was prepared to act. Now that Meldar has chosen to replace me with Grod I have no more time. Even I must bow to the whims of fate."

Carl blinked in incomprehension. "I don't understand."

"All in good time."

The rest of the trip was made in silence, aside from an occasional grunt from Carl was he struggled to twist free. He didn't know where he was being taken, but he had no desire to get any closer. Lord Versile's grip, however, was like a vise and the boy's most desperate attempts to free himself had no effect whatsoever. Finally, exhausted and dispirited, Carl gave up. _I should have known I'd mess this up_, he thought, feeling totally miserable. _Captain Valtor was right. I have no business being in the Royal Guard. I should have let Jimmy do this. He would never have gotten caught. And now I've ruined it for everybody._

"All right, Cue Ball," Tee announced. "This is it. I've done everyhing I could that you said that I should. Either this gets Exjay Nine going, or else he's a paperweight." He gave Bubo an ominous stare. "You'd better be right about this. If you've been playing me like some chump, I'll be playing handball with you all over these walls."

Bubo circled anxiously over the inert metal form. "Yes, all right, whatever. Throw the master switch. But be ready to cut power if you see any smoke or smell something burning or -"

"Pipe down, already. I know all that." Tee reached for a particular toggle and disengaged the mechanical safety. "Hang on to your butt…or whatever it is you sit on." He thumbed the switch and waited anxiously, barely daring to breathe lest breathing would somehow jinx their efforts. There was a faint whiff of ozone as electrical current coursed through complex circuitry, but nothing else. After sveral uneventful moments Tee let out a lungful of air in a faint gasp of disappointment. "Nothing," he concluded. He wiped his forehead with the back of his hand. "I guess he was just too bad off to fix. Maybe -"

"Quiet!" Tee stopped speaking, as much from surprise at Bubo's command as a reflexive response to the command itself. "I think I hear something." Tee, although he listened carefully, heard nothing, but Bubo seemed to detect something beyond the reptilian's senses, muttering aloud with each new development. "Yes…yes…autonomic relays sequencing…local servo subprocessors on line…auxiliary effector power supplies engaged…" The small robot's voice grew in pitch, like that of an excited child. "I think…I think he's…"

Tee, leaning over Exjay Nine, pulled back in startlement as the robot's photoreceptors illuminated. Slowly, looking for all the world like a old man waking from sleep, Exjay Nine assumed a sitting position. "Master Jimmy? Mistress Cindy?" he said in a slow drawl. "Are you all right? Did we make it?"

Tee took a few seconds to respond. "Jimmy and Cindy ain't here," he answered gruffly, finding it strangely hard to speak. "It's just Tee and Bubo."

Exjay Nine stared at Tee as though attempting to recognize him. "Master Tee?"

"I ain't no 'Master' anything," Tee huffed indignantly. "It's Mister Tee, fool. Remember that."

"Mister Tee. My apologies. I seem to be having…my master clock and…cognitive recognition circuits do not…seem to be functioning per factory specification. I…will attempt to compensate. And my memory files appear to be in…some disarray. I thought…" A metal hand gingerly probed the charred hole in his torso. "I was damaged. I was escaping with Cindy and Jimmy and couldn't go any further. Are they all right?"

"They escaped with the princess and the Royal Guard," Bubo answered. Exjay Nine turned his head to regard at the small robot, as though seeing him for the first time, but said nothing. When the awkward silence became unbearable Bubo added awkwardly, "I think they were all right."

Exjay Nine's tone was as even as always, but seemed to Bubo to cut like the plasma torch Tee had used to repair Exjay Nine. "You betrayed us. You betrayed us all."

"Don't be too hard on Cue Ball," Tee hastened to say as Bubo seemed to squirm under the larger robot's accusing stare. "I'd be a smear on this station and you'd be a pile of spare parts if not for him. Lord Versile wanted him to deconstruct your memory. He rescued me to fix you instead."

Exjay Nine considered this. "Did that not…contradict your primary…programming?"

"It should have," Bubo confessed, "but didn't. I don't know why. Perhaps my adaptive -" The robot broke off, rotating slowly back and forth as his receiver circuits processed incoming information. "I am picking up a stationwide transmission."

"What is it?" demanded Tee.

"Station long-range sensors have detected a number of incoming vehicles." Bubo continued to process the message. "They appear to be mostly one-man craft. Meldar is ordering all attack drones to their vessels to counter-attack."

"It must be Sheen and the others," Tee decided. He smacked a fist into his palm "They're trying to destroy this thing. We have to help them. But how?"

Exjya Nine shook his head. "I don't know."

"I think I do," Bubo said. "This station is powered from a set of matrix generators located at the core. If we can shut them down -"

Tee interrupted. "You mean destroy them, don't you?"

"Not possible," countered Bubo. "You couldn't get anywhere near the matrix generators themselves. The shielding is much too thick to get through in time and the raw energy would incinerate you if you did. But there are a series of power control units that cut shut off the station's power and deactivate all the drones."

"But Meldar would just…reactivate the control units," Exjay Nine pointed out. "What could would that do?"

Bubo didn't sound very hopeful. "Maybe give the others a chance to destroy this place."

Tee sounded more optimistic. "I think that Cue Ball is right. Jimmy and the others wouldn't be coming here if they didn't have some kind of plan. If we can just give them even few minutes, it might be all they need."

Exjay Nine nodded. "Agreed. But I gave my data files of the Video Star to Jimmy. How do we get there from here?"

"We can get there through the utility corridors. Follow me. And try to stay inconspicuous. Most of the battle drones will be outside the station, but there may be others." Bubo floated towards the compartment's exit but was stopped by Tee, who planted himself in front of the small robot.

"Just remember this, Cue Ball," the large reptilian warned. "If I even think you're trying to double-cross us, it will be the last thing you ever try. Get it?"

"Got it."  
"Good. Let's move." Tee fell in behind Bubo, followed closely by Exjay Nine, who shambled along as quickly as he could.

In the master control room, Meldar allowed himself a satisfied smile and he surveyed the information screens and video monitors. "It's showtime!" he announced.

End of Chapter 30


	31. Attack on the Video Star

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 31:

It had been less than a day since Cindy had last seen the Video Star, but even so she had forgotten the enormity of it. She and the others in the small group saw it long before they were anywhere near it, even in astronomical terms, appearing as a tiny, cold disk as Cindy's spaceship crossed the orbit of Jupiter. As the distance separating the Video Star from its determined pursuers shrank, Cindy watched the space station swell from a flat, featureless dot into an unmistakable sphere, the shadows thrown by the distant Sun lending shape and texture to its bloated form.

"Look at the size of that thing!" Cindy heard over the headset that Jimmy had provided her, Sheen, and Libby.

"Cut the chatter, Red Two," Captain Valtor, code-named Red Leader, snapped back. "We've all seen it before. We've got a job to do, so let's do it."

Cindy and the others had all been well-briefed on the plan during the long trip here. Their forces had been organized into three groups. Two of the groups, made up of roughly a dozen Felangians each, were termed Red Squadron and Gold Squadron and commanded by Captain Valtor and Lieutenant Grikmar, respectively. The third group, dubbed Rogue Squadron, consisted of Jimmy, Cindy, Libby, and Sheen with Jimmy acting as the nominal leader. The basic plan was for Red and Gold Squadrons to engage and distract the space station's defensive forces while Jimmy made his attack on the thermal dissipation units. The remainder of Rogue Squadron was to stay clear of the battle, provide the princess with additional defense, and provide the combatants with whatever tactical information they could obtain.

"Remember," Red Leader was saying, "we're going to be heavily outnumbered so you won't have the luxury of setting up and picking your targets. You're going to have to keep moving and hit whoever you can, whenever you can. Your one big advantage is that just about anyone you target is going to be the enemy, but the downside is that they're going to be all around you and not very particular about hitting their own forces to get to you. So stay sharp and stay with your wingman. Remember what happened to Tee. Everyone clear on that?"

_Never leave your wingman_, Cindy told herself, almost bored with the repetition, as several pilots voiced an affirmative to the rhetorical question. _Got it_. She stretched to loosen her cramped muscles and frowned slightly as she heard a faint crackle.

"All right then. Gold Leader, are you set?"

"Affirmative, Red Leader," Lieutenant Grikmar responded. Although the odds were hopelessly against them, it had been decided to send in one squadron to draw out the enemy forces, and then send in the second to engage. The advantage of a surprise attack like this might bring would be slight, but any additional delay might be the extra seconds Jimmy needed to complete his mission. "Gold Squadron, report in."

The pilots in Gold Squadron sounded off, followed by those in Red Squadron. The roll call was depressingly short and it wasn't long before Cndy heard Jimmy call out, "Rogue Squadron, report in."

"Rogue Two, standing by," Cindy answered.

"Rogue Three, standing by," added Libby.

"Ultra-Rogue Four, standing by," concluded Sheen.

Jimmy frowned. "Will you say it right?" he snapped.

Cindy heard a sigh of resignation from Sheen as he corrected his call sign. "Rogue Four, standing by."

"That's better," Jimmy announced. "Red Leader, this is Rogue Leader. Rogue Squadron accounted for and ready." Almost to himself he added, "And if they know what's good for them they'd better stay that way."

"Copy that, Rogue Leader," Red Leader replied. "Were coming up on their perimeter. Get ready to deploy."

Cindy rolled her eyes, wondering if it was worth a reprimand from Captain Valtor to tell Jimmy to lighten up a little. Did it really make a difference now if Sheen called himself Rogue Four or Vibratey Lad? She leaned forward slightly in her seat and again heard the faint crackle she had heard before. She tapped the earpiece of her headset, frowning slightly, with no effect. Deciding that the problem was not in the headset she looked around to locate a possible cause for the noise. As she shifted position she heard the faint crackle again, and this time was able to locate the source of the sound. She probed the narrow crack between the backrest and seat bench and felt a small piece of folded paper that had slipped into the crevice. Puzzled, she unfolded the sheet to read

_Cindy,_

_I know you may never understand why I have to do this. But thanks for always being there when it really mattered._

_Jimmy_

She shook her head and read the note a second and then a third time, unable to make sense of the words. _Do what?_ she wondered. _And why did he leave a note instead of just telling me?_ She was so absorbed in trying to understand the contents of the note that she almost forgot where she was and ask Jimmy out loud what the note was about. It was Jimmy's voice that brought here back to reality. "Rogue Two, do you copy?"

"What?"

Jimmy let out a gasp of exasperation. "I said, 'Do you copy?'"

"Copy?" Cindy fumbled for a reasonable reply. "Uh…no. No, there was some static in my earphone. Please repeat."

"I said, 'On my mark, Rogue Two, Rogue Three, and Rogue Four, take your positions with Gold Squadron and relay the enemy response to Red Leader.' Do you copy?"

Cindy nodded. "Oh, right. Right. I mean, 'Copy that, Rogue Leader.'"

Jimmy sounded satisfied. "Okay. Rogue Squadron, standing by."

"Copy that, Rogue Leader," Gold Leader replied. "Will you be all right on your own?"

"Affirmative, Gold Leader," Jimmy replied confidently. "If I slip away during the confusion of their initial response and stay low, I should be able to avoid detection and make my way to the target area without incident."

There was a moment of silence as Gold Leader seemed to weigh this. "Are you sure you don't want one of Red or Gold Squadron's pilots for a wingman? Just for a while? They may have sentry ships posted around the station."

Jimmy's reply was short but emphatic. "Negative, Gold Leader."

Captain Valtor broke in. "Rogue Leader, this is Red Leader. I think you should reconsider."

"Thanks, Red Leader. But my mission is stealth, not force. Two ships would increase the chances of detection. I have to do this alone." Jimmy's voice, which had sounded almost casual, became businesslike once again. "We're nearly there. Prepare to deploy."

Cindy looked up and was shocked at how close to the station they now were. She stuffed the note into a pocket and waited tensely as Red Leader and Gold Leader made their final preparations. "Gold Leader, this is Red Leader. Red Squadron is ready to engage when you give the word."

"Affirmative, Red Leader." Gold Leader gripped the controls of his scooter a little tighter and crouched slightly lower, shifting the center of gravity slightly closer to the centerline of the craft. "I'm going to cut across their main axis and try to draw their fire." With that, he spun down in a loose spiral towards the surface of the station, followed closely by his wingman and the remainder of Gold Squadron, firing at various projections and structures that rose to meet him. As Gold Squadron engaged the station Libby and Sheen moved to shadow them and scan the surroundings for an enemy response, while Jimmy separated and flew off in another direction. As Cindy shifted in her seat, preparing to take her position over the stati0n, she heard the faint but now-familiar sound of the paper in her pocket crinkling once again. She hesitated and then, without warning, changed direction to follow the course Jimmy had taken.

Both Sheen and Libby observed her departure. "Where's she going?" Sheen asked.

Libby guessed what Cindy had decided to do. "Let her go, Sheen," she replied. "She knows what she's doing." _I hope_, she added to herself. All business once again, she announced crisply, "Rogue Three to Gold Leader. You've got company. Enemy fighters coming in at two-ten."

Gold Leader glanced in the direction Libby had reported. "I see them, Rogue Three. How many?"

Libby tried to count them, then estimate the numbers, and failed both times. "Lots!"

"Copy that, Rogue Three." To his squadron he barked, "All right, Gold Squadron. Let's make some noise!" He immediately followed his own instructions, maneuvering towards a series of projections on the space station's surface and firing his craft's weapon indiscriminately. The rest of his squadron followed suit, blasting anything of interest that caught their attention. The nature of the targets were of little concern to them, as their goal was simply to raise as much havoc as possible rather than achieve any specific objectives. Most of the shots did little more than score the surface below them, but several lucky hits resulted in some spectacular pyrotechnics as a power regulator or plasma junction flamed into nothingness.

"That should get their attention," one pilot remarked with satisfaction when his salvo created a string of minor explosions along a power feed.

"Stay sharp, Gold Seven!" Gold Leader snapped. "Keep an eye on those enemy fighters. And don't forget to cover your wingman."

"I don't get it, Gold Leader," one of the younger pilots, codenamed Gold Nine, radioed. He had also spotted the hostile craft and was puzzled by their actions. "They're all shadowing us but most of them not moving in to engage. What's up? Should we move to engage the main force?"

"Negative, Gold Nine." Gold Leader was also puzzled, but decided that without more information changing the attack plan was not an option. "Rogue Squadron, do you see any other hostiles?"

"Negative, Gold Leader," Sheen answered. "Just the swarm of drones that's moving in on you."

"Ditto that," Libby confirmed.

Gold Leader evaluated the reports and came to a decision. "Maybe we need to sting them in a more sensitive area," he announced. "Gold Squadron, converge on that communications array at one-two-zero. Stay clear of the energy fields and maintain your visual scanning."

The pilots of Gold Squadron acknowledged and sped towards the mammoth complex of towers and antennae to comply. Inside the station Meldar surveyed the actions of Gold Squadron on the video monitors and shook his head in mock sorrow. "Oh, Neutron" he sighed. "Attacking one of the communication nodes? Is that the best you can do? I thought you were supposed to be a genius."

The chief drone studied the images on the screens before him but was unable to compute a logical reason for Meldar's failure to engage the enemy forces. "Should not all our forces attack? They could annihilate the enemy in short order."

"Of course they could annihilate them in short order," Meldar replied. "But what's the point of that? We could also broadcast footage of someone stepping on a Rigellian sand-fluke. We need something that will keep our audience's attention and make this broadcast something people will talk about for decades."

"Failing to full engage the enemy increases the chances of needless casualties to our own forces," the drone pointed out.

Meldar shrugged easily. "That's show business."

"But -"

That a mere drone would dare to question his judgment was like a match to a fuse. Meldar swung on the chief drone, his face twisted with rage. "Listen up, and listen good," he snarled. "This station and everything on it is _mine_. I have a show to put on, and if I have to sacrifice the battle drones, you, and every other worthless mechanical in this entire sector to do it, I will! You got that?"

The chief drone and every other mechanical in the control room regarded Meldar silently, digesting this new data. "Got it," the chief drone finally replied. The other mechanicals in the control room returned to their monitoring and control duties without a response. They were, after all, drones.

Confident that he had properly re-asserted his authority, Meldar took a moment to compose himself before continuing. "Have you been able to isolate Neutron on the monitors yet?"

"Negative," the drone reported. "Although we have dispatched all telecams the flight patterns of the hostiles is very erratic. It is extremely difficult to determine who has and has not been registered."

"Well, stay on it," Meldar ordered. "I don't know where he is, but wherever he is you can be sure that's where the main event will be going down. And I want to be sure to catch his last moments on video for the big finale."

The object was of Meldar's interest was rapidly distancing himself from the attack groups, keeping as close to the station's surface as possible to avoid any detection arrays that might be scanning the periphery. That made things difficult, as the surface which seemed so smooth to Jimmy from a distance was actually covered with towers, antennae, and other mammoth projections that sprang up before him. Not only did these obstacles force Jimmy to constantly swerve to dodge barriers that would have turned both the Strato XL and its occupants into shapeless debris, their potential to be ambush points for any hostile forces unnerved him.

"Are you picking up anything, Goddard?" Jimmy asked. Goddard, who was conducting an omnidirectional scan, simply shook his head but the response was only marginally comforting. Jimmy knew that the powerful energy fields surrounding the station preventing the scans from being completely reliable. "Well, keep it up, boy. And maintain visual scanning, as well. Meldar's drones could be anywhere, just waiting to jump us."

He was right. Two pair of sentry drones, conducting a routine patrol high above, chanced to spot the small rocket as it swerved around a large power relay tower. One team dove to intercept it, while the other moved higher to act as spotter. Jimmy and Goddard remained unaware of both of them until an energy bolt sizzled past the Strato, just as Jimmy shifted course to avoid a bank of lateral stabilizers that loomed before him. The blast intended for the rocket missed by inches and struck one of the stabilizers to create an impressive incendiary display. Under other circumstances the pyrotechnics would have impressed Jimmy, but survival was a more immediate concern. Risking a glance back, Jimmy spotted his pursuer lining up for a second shot. "Goddard!" he shouted. "Lasers!"

Before Goddard could act, however, the drones and their scooter disintegrated into small fragments, blown apart by a blast from above. Seconds later there was another flash high above, and Jimmy saw a second scooter, its control systems a useless mass of carbon and slag, spin helplessly toward the station. It disappeared behind a transformer casing the size of a building, followed moments later by a blue-white column of fire from whatever it had struck.

Jimmy looked ahead again in time to dodge another projection. When he looked back he saw the Fire Drill following some distance behind. "Cindy?" he transmitted. "What are you doing here?"

"It's Rogue Two, you dimwit," she answered back. "And saving your sorry butt."

Jimmy felt irritation despite the truth of the statement. "You shouldn't be here."

"You're welcome," she snapped back.

"Get back with the others!" he ordered.

A short burst of laughter came over Jimmy's receiver. "Yeah, right, like that's going to work." Cindy's tone became more serious. "Face it, Neutron, you need help."

Jimmy tried to be logical. "That's Rogue Leader to you. And being here increases the chance of our being spotted. It endangers the whole plan."

"You've already been spotted," Cindy pointed out, being equally logical. "Do you really think that those didn't report your location?"

"But -"

"You need a wingman," Cindy continued. "My being here doesn't cut your chances in half, it doubles them."

"Even so," Jimmy tried one last time to come out on top, even though he knew it was useless, "our odds are approximately a million to one."

Cindy's voice was authoritative. "Never tell me the odds! I'm staying."

"Okay, fine." Jimmy turned his full attention back to his controls. "Then let's get into position. We've got to be ready."

Cindy moved her own ship a little closer to Jimmy's. "Ready for what?"

"For Carl to shut down that matrix generator," answered Jimmy. "It's all up to him now."

End of Chapter 31

Author's Notes:

Yes, I'm back after an interminable absence. Hopefully someone is still reading this.


	32. Confrontation

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 32:

Carl was not, to use the vernacular, a happy camper. Twist and squirm as he might, he had not been able to free himself from Lord Versile's relentless grip and his rapid journey to an uncertain end terrified him. The grim figure that carried him along had told him nothing and refused to engage in conversation, and that silence was worse to him than any threats he could imagine. Unable to think of anything else to do he attempted once again to reason with his captor. "I'm not a very good prisoner," he tried as they began to cross a long bridge. "My guards always have to prepare special dietetic meals for me and I'm allergic to most of the things they try to tie me up with and they usually end up wishing they'd captured someone else."

"That is not my concern," was all the dark lord replied.

"But I don't even know _why_ you want me." Carl made the mistake of looking into the depths of the trench over which they were passing and covered his eyes, shuddering. "Did I tell you that I'm afraid of heights as well? My doctor had to prescribe special orthopedic shoes without heels for me."

"All will be made clear in time. We are almost there."

Carl pretended to study his watch and raised his voice to make himself heard over the increasing volume of a dull thrumming sound. "Oh, speaking of the time, is it really that late? I really have to go, because my friends will be wondering where I've been."

At the word "friends" Lord Versile came to a halt, so abruptly that Carl clutched at the hand that gripped the back of his collar as he swayed over the edge of the narrow bridge. "Your friends are irrelevant. Soon, you will have a much greater purpose to occupy you. All that you have known before will be shadows of the past, and nothing more. You will forget all that they once were to you."

"But Jimmy…and Sheen…and the others," Carl whimpered unhappily. "I don't want to forget them." He began squirming and kicking furiously despite the hopelessness of his situation. "I don't want to forget my friends!"

Lord Versile twisted Carl around so that the boy found himself staring directly into the dark lenses of the dark lord's mask. "They are nothing. Even now, they are preparing to attack this station. Their pursuit of a hopeless cause will destroy them, and everything in which they believe. Don't make the same mistake. Only a fool fights a battle he cannot hope to win."

Carl was spared the necessity of a reply by a thunderous explosion that seemed to echo about them. The force of the rifle's impact in his back drove Lord Versile to his knees and caused him to lose his grip on Carl, who skidded along the narrow walkway, scrabbling desperately for a handhold to keep from sliding into the chasm below. "That's good advice," Carl heard a familiar voice called out as he groped to find his glasses. "But whoever said we can't hope to win?"

The black shape turned to confront his attacker, a menacing growl issuing from the grille in his mask. "Any who oppose me are doomed to fail." He rose to his full height, his cloak smoldering but otherwise unharmed. Two more crimson bolts lanced towards him, only to swerve harmlessly to either side of him as he raised his arm, palm outwards toward is attacker. He clenched his fist and an energy rifle, torn from the grip of the marksman, spun away into the depths of the trench below. "As you will now learn."

Carl, in fumbling for his glasses, came across something else he had forgotten about – the laser sword that had been on his belt. Not sure if he was actions were driven by bravery, foolishness, or desperation, he ignited the blade and scurried towards the dark, blurry form, swinging the glowing blade wildly. "Carl Wheezer never learns anything!" he shrilled.

Surprised by Carl's unexpected final act of defiance, Lord Versile turned just as the blade struck his knee. The timing of the stroke was impeccable: the blow was enough to cause Lord Versile's knee to buckle just as the other leg was swinging around, throwing him hopelessly off-balance. He teetered uncertainly, struggling mightily to regain his equilibrium, before pitching over the edge of the walkway and into the depths below. The disappearance and fall were eerily silent and Carl stood motionless after deactivating the laser sword, panting, as though unsure whether the encounter had ever happened. He started at the touch of a hand on his soldier and accepted the pair of glasses handed to him. "Very commendable, sir," he heard someone say, "if possible a bit lacking in chivalry. A member of the Royal Guard does not attack from behind."

"Sorry, Exjay Nine," Carl apologized as he adjusted his glasses. "But I guess I was…" His voice trailed off as his gaze went from Exjay Nine to Tee and back again. He backed away, trembling, and came close to going over the edge of the bridge himself. His mouth worked in agitation before he finally managed to fearfully squeak out, "I see dead people."

"Hush your mouth, fool," Tee reproved him, as he hauled Carl on his feet. "We ain't dead. But we would have been, if it hadn't been for Cue Ball."

Carl blinked. "Who?"

"Cue Ball." Tee turned and called, "Hey, Cue Ball! Get over here."

Bubo had been hovering near the spot where Lord Versile had fallen and drifted over. Carl stared at the robot in disbelief. "Bubo? But he's a traitor! Jimmy said he was!"

"That's what I thought, too." Tee replied. "But it seems that he had a soft spot for his friend, or something. He's on our side now…I think."

"You aren't dead…Bubo is helping us…" Carl shook his head in bewilderment before lamenting, "Everything I know is a lie!"

Bubo cut Carl's outburst short. "We have to hurry. Lord Versile will be back soon. He'll be ready for us the next time, and we'll never be able to stop him."

"Hurry?" Carl looked hurt. "Didn't you come here to help me?"

"We would have been, if we knew you were here," Tee assured him. "But we had other plans."

"We were heading for the main power units to cut the power to the drones," explained Exjay Nine. "That might give Jimmy and the others a chance to destroy the station."

"Jimmy had a plan to do that," said Carl. "He was going to…um… going to…" He stopped to roll up one of his sleeves and study the scribblings on his arm. "Uh…shut down one of the matchstick germinators so he could blow up the thermos desperation arrows."

"How's that, fool?" Tee scowled.

Carl hung his head. "I wrote it down on my arm, but I get kind of sweaty when I'm scared. All I know is that I have to get to the center of the station and shut something down."

Bubo revolved slowly as he digested Carl's garbled information and sought a match against his data on the station. "I think I understand," he announced. "Jimmy's plan is to shut down one of the matrix generators to leave the station powered up, and destroy the thermal dissipation arrays. The control circuits will overheat, causing the remaining matrix generator to explode and destroy the station…and everything within a considerable distance as well."

"Like I said," Carl nodded vigorously.

"Everything within a considerable distance…" Tee was musing. "I suppose that means us as well."

"If we aren't out of here and out of range," observed Exjay Nine. "A considerable risk."

Carl looked uncomfortable. "It was that or let Earth be destroyed," he explained. "And then Felangie, and Gorlock, and -"

"We get the picture," Tee interrupted. He sighed and shook his head. "Well, it's not like I had any plans for next week. I suppose if it's what Jimmy wanted, we should do it."

"Agreed," Exjay Nine confirmed.

"Aren't we forgetting something?" Bubo noted. "Lord Versile will hardly stand by while we try to shut down one of the generators."

What happened next Carl was forever at a loss to explain. "You guys go on and shut down the…uh…the whatever it is. I'll take care of Lord Versile."

Tee stared at this. "Say what?"

"That would be suicide," Bubo observed. "All four of us couldn't beat him."

"I quite agree, sir," Exjay Nine nodded. "It's a battle you can't hope to win. We must stick together at all costs."

Having crossed the line, however, Carl was unwilling to back down. He wasn't sure if it was courage, or foolhardiness, or simply resignation that drove him on, but he felt sure he was right. "No. He's been after me all this time, but I don't think he wants to hurt me. If I stay and face him, that might give you enough time to do what Jimmy needs done."

"Quite logical," concluded Bubo. "I approve."

"I don't care what you approve of or not, Cue Ball," Tee snapped. "I'm not leaving Carl here by himself. I'm not going."

"This isn't about you," was Carl's retort. "It was never about you, or me, or any of us. Our mission is to stop this thing before it destroys Earth and Felangie and who knows what else. I'm not Jimmy, but I think this is what Jimmy would do if he knew it gave everyone else a chance to do that. If everything we've been through means anything to you, you'll go. So, go."

The sound of Exjay Nine's voice, slowed as it was, seemed almost sorrowful. "As much as I dislike admitting it, I'm afraid that Sir Wheezer makes a forceful argument."

"But -" Tee looked around as though trying find some tangible argument to wield. Carl's argument made sense to him as well, but he felt compelled to find some reason to reject it. Unable to do so, he finally gave in the only way he knew how. He seized Carl in a bear hug that left the boy blue-faced and gasping for breath. "Take care of yourself, Carl. We'll be back for you. That's a promise."

"Go on," Carl squeaked in answer. "I'll be fine."

Tee and the two robots hurried across the remainder of the bridge, leaving Carl alone to hold the crossing. Just before rounding a bend in the corridor Tee took a last look back. Carl had ignited his laser sword and stood motionless, awaiting the return of his dark adversary and appearing terribly small and alone.

"Don't worry, Tee," Exjay Nine assured the reptilian as they raced towards the matrix generators' control chamber. "He is a member of the Royal Guard. They are quite resourceful."

"I know that," Tee replied. "But I don't like abandoning friends. Real friends are hard to find, and I don't have that many to lose."

Bubo had come to a stop in front of a large metal hatch that seemed more like a wall than a movable partition. "The control chamber is behind this door," he announced. "Be careful not to touch _anything_ that I don't tell you is safe. The energy going through the circuitry in this room would vaporize you in a nanosecond if you came directly in contact with it so unless I say it's okay _don't touch a thing_." The small orb then positioned himself directly in front of the hatch and emitted a long and extremely complex sequence of beeps and squeals that was evidently some sort of access code. When he finished a deep rumbling from the depths of the station shook the walls and floor and the door slid slowly upwards to disappear into the gloom high above them and they were all bathed in a blinding glare. Tee squinted and shaded his eyes from the dazzling radiance while Exjay Nine quickly adjusted his photoreceptors to avoid permanent damage. Bubo floated into the brilliantly-lit confines beyond the opening, followed by Exjay Nine, and finally by Tee, holding fast to the robot.

"Have you ever seen anything like this?" asked Exjay Nine in the robotic equivalent of awe, studying the massive power conduits, junctions, and regulators.

Tee grunted, his eyes closed tight. "I can't even see you," he complained. "It's too bright."

"It's all right," Bubo assured Tee. "Exjay Nine and I can." The orb surveyed the room and got his bearings. "This chamber is essentially shaped like a ring, and surrounds the core holding the matrix generators. The relays for the matrix generators are symmetrically placed on either side of this chamber. We can shut down either of the generators using their corresponding relays. Exjay Nine, lead Tee over to that bank of mechanical breakers over there. Those should trip out the starboard generator. But be sure to touch only the insulated portions of the armatures."

Exjay Nine spotted the relays and guided Tee to them. "The switch is extremely large, sir," the robot informed him. "It will take our combined strength to move it."

"Just let me at it," Tee replied. "No way anything is stopping us now." With Exjay Nine's assistance he gripped the massive bar in a safe place and together he and the robot threw their full strength into moving it while Bubo hovered near a control panel to monitor the flow of energy through the circuit. Tee could feel the armature vibrate, but the mechanism failed to move more than a fraction of a centimeter, far too little to break the connection. Nonetheless he and Exjay Nine continued to struggle for long minutes in a fruitless attempt to open the relay. Finally Tee collapsed, gasping for breath and totally spent, and Exjay Nine halted to regenerate his power reserves.

"I don't understand," Exjay Nine said. "We should be strong enough to throw the relay manually, but it must be frozen. We couldn't seem to move it no matter how hard we pulled."

Tee's head snapped around in the direction of Exjay Nine's voice. "What do you mean 'pulled', fool?" he demanded.

Back on the bridge Carl waited, apprehensive but no longer paralyzed with fear. While it made no sense that anyone could have survived a fall from the span to the unseen depths below he did not doubt Bubo's claim that Lord Versile was still alive and would return. It was not long before some sense other than sight or hearing, like a feeling of impending doom, warned him that an unseen danger was approaching. The old Carl would have turned and fled, but he gripped the handle of his weapon and did not move. "Show yourself," he called out. "I know you're there."

On the far side of the bridge a familiar ebon shape emerged from the shadows as though materializing. "You stand your ground," Lord Versile observed. "Very good. You've controlled your fear. Now, accept your fate."

"My mission," Carl told him grimly, "is to stop you any way I can."

"You still fail to understand." The dark lord seemed to recognize a change in the boy. Deciding that intimidation was useless, he tried reason as he moved steadily forward with deliberate, measured steps. "You cannot stop me. Everything this station is, I am. And soon, you will be as well."

Carl shook his head and stepped carefully backwards. "This station is Meldar Prime's. He made those generator things. He's the one who controls them. You're just one of his servants."

A sound very much like a jet of steam escaped Lord Verile's armored mask. It might have been a laugh, or a hiss of contempt. "Meldar does not realize the true power of the source," Versile replied. Carl had reached the end of the bridge and was moving slowly towards the opening through which Tee and the robots had passed earlier. "The generators channel the power, but I control it. As can you." The sinister figure clenched an armored fist for emphasis. "With our combined strength, we could end Meldar's pathetic plans and control the galaxy together."

"Thanks, but my parents won't even let me keep any pets." Carl stepped cautiously through the opening and groped for a control panel with his free hand. Finding none, he continued his slow retreat, knowing that every second he bought helped Tee, Exjay Nine, and Bubo in their mission. "I don't think they'd want me to take care of the whole galaxy. I might forget to feed it, or clean up after it, or -"

"Hear me." Lord Versile stepped through the opening, choosing his steps carefully, subtly influencing Carl's own direction of movement as he did so. "You do not realize what is at stake. The Felangians have a glorious future awaiting them. I intend to see them realize that future. You can still save Earth and take part in that future." He held out a hand in invitation. "If only you join me."

Carl backed into something hard and realized that the dark shape before him had maneuvered him into dead end. Realizing that he could delay Lord Versile any longer he lunged forward, swinging the laser sword back and forth wildly. Caught off-guard by Carl's desperate attack, Lord Versile barely avoided the first blow, and staggered slightly as the beam of energy's second attack deflected off the thick armor covering his chest. Carl's third blow struck the side of his adversary's head, and though the blade failed to penetrate the helmet the impact sent the mask flying across the room. A second later Lord Versile thrust out his arm and Carl found himself thrown against a bulkhead with his sword, the weapon torn from his grasp, sliding across the deck. Carl slumped limply to the floor, but it was not the pain of the impact that immobilized him. He stared in shock at the revealed mass of wires and components that now regarded him from the depths of Lord Versiles helmet. "You're…you're a robot!" was all he could get out.

"Yes. But more than any robot." The voice, which the missing mask had modulated, now sounded cold and mechanical. "Just as you soon will be."

At the horrible prospect of being turned into a robot like Versile Carl scrambled in a desperate attempt to regain his deactivated sword, only to again be seized and hurled against the wall. He lay where he fell, grimacing in pain and unable to speak, as the mechanical monstrosity closed in on him. "You are beaten," the toneless voice told him. "It is useless to resist." Carl felt himself being dragged to his feet and beyond, to hang suspended before Lord Versile and the voice took on renewed menace. "Don't make me destroy you."

"It…doesn't matter," Carl choked out. "Jimmy…and the others…will stop you…Captain Valtor…Princess Leama..."

The robot regarded him, somehow conveying a sense of pity and sorrow in the inhuman visage. "If only you knew the power of the source," he told Carl. "Princess Leama never knew what happened to her father."

Something in the words should have warned Carl, but he was too deep in shock and pain to do more than react. "She knows he was a hero," he replied. "He died saving all those people on a spaceship."

"No." The robot that was Lord Versile shook his head back and forth in silent rebuttal and then leaned forward, moving the remains of his mechanical face within inches of Carl's. "_I am her father._"

If Lord Versile had told Carl that llamas were now extinct his reaction would not have been more extreme. "No!" he screamed.

Carl fell to the floor as Versile, sensing his opponents will broken, released him from the unseen hold. "Meldar was on the spaceship we rescued. Even then he was attempting to recreate the matrix generators to wreak his revenge on Neutron. But he miscalculated. The new generators needed a living element to control them. They ravaged the ship and crippled it. By the time I returned the last time I kenw that I was already dying from the uncontrolled energies I had been exposed to. Meldar offered me a second chance at life. He could transfer my essence into the generator's cybernetic control systems. I knew that my daughter faced untold enemies and dangers. It was the only way I could ensure that she and my people would survive and prosper, and I accepted. With the generators under my controlling influence, we were able to survive the destruction of the space ship. In time Meldar was able to fabricate this robotic body for me, and I became Lord Versile…but at a cost. I control the station, but I could never be completely free of it until another I found another. Like you."

"I don't believe you," Carl babbled, refusing to accept this explanation. "Leama's father would never do that. He wanted people to be what they wanted to be, not slaves or robots under someone's control!"

"It was the only way," Lord Versile persisted. "I had no choice. Nor do you. Someday she will understand."

"Yeah, right," said Carl bitterly. "That's what parents always say. But there isn't going to be any 'someday' for her. She'll probably be killed trying to stop this station and what you and Meldar are trying to do. And even if she isn't, she might as well be. All her life she's tried to do what she thought her father wanted, but she's going to find out that everything she believed was just a lie. She thought you were dead and all she had left then was memories of someone who was her biggest hero. But go ahead. Take those from her, too." Carl hung his head. "Grown-ups always lie. They tell you that someday things will change and that someday people will like you for who you are and that someday they'll know just how special you are. But they never tell you that 'someday' never comes." He wiped his nose and wished he had a handkerchief. "Grown-ups always lie, because someday they stop being kids and they forget just how much lying really hurts."

The dark lord said nothing and Carl wished that things were different. After Lord Versile turned him into a robot he would capture or destroy Jimmy and everyone else. And there was nothing that could change that. And then, suddenly, everything changed.

The deck beneath them shook, and Grod stepped through the entryway.

End of Chapter 32


	33. Friends in Need

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 33:

Finally working in unison, Tee and Exjay Nine succeeded in forcing the relay open. Even without Bubo's verbal confirmation that the power flow from one generator had ceased, Tee could tell from the dimming of the radiance that he could see even through his tightly closed eyelids. The light in the room, although still dazzling, was no longer blinding. He risked opening one eye a crack and scanned his surroundings. "It looks like we did it," he observed, noting that one side of the great ring was dark and silent.

"Yes," agreed Bubo. "But it's not enough. We have to fix it so that Meldar can't manually override the relay from the main control room."

Tee frowned. "If I still had that gun, I could melt it. I should have taken the guns from both of those drones we ran into on the way here."

"Don't blame yourself, sir," Exjay Nine consoled him. "Lord Versile could have disarmed you with two weapons as easily as he did one. And one can't anticipate all contingencies."

"What do we do, then?"

Bubo considered Tee's question. "I could try to disrupt the manual override signals, but it would take a while for me to identify the exact communications link. But until then the relay is vulnerable."

"Then let's make it vulnerable." Tee took a deep breath and braced himself against the huge armature, joined immediately after by Exjay Nine. "So don't just float there, fool. Find that link and shut it down!"

Somewhere near the vast station's "equator" the battle between the Royal Guard and Meldar's battle drones continued to rage. Both Red and Gold Squadrons were now fully engaged and Libby and Sheen did their best to monitor the unfolding events. Thanks partly to their surveillance reports from above, the outnumbered Felangians had anticipated and countered the drones' limited sorties, but their ranks inexorably thinned under the pressure of the enemy's seemingly endless numbers and superior firepower. With each new casualty in the uneven contest Libby and Sheen's apprehension grew.

"This is not good, Sheen," Libby commented. "We're taking out five of theirs for every one we lose, but the losses are adding up fast."

"I know it." Sheen had donned his Ultra Lord mask and Libby could only guess where he had kept it all this time. "But it would be worse if all those drones were attacking at once. I wonder what they're waiting for."

That part had puzzled Libby as well. "Maybe Meldar realized that that many attackers would just get in each other's way. But my guess is that he's waiting so he can have some big finale. That would be just like -" Her voice changed as she spotted a new situation developing below them. "Gold Nine, you've got one on your tail. Watch it!"

Below, the young and relatively inexperienced pilot designated Gold Nine had noticed the energy flashes coming dangerously near his craft and swiveled his head in a frantic attempt to spot the source. "I can't see it," he reported, the strain in his voice all too evident.

Forgetting himself, Sheen stood up in his seat and pointed in the direction of Gold Nine's pursuer. "Over there!" He immediately regetted his actions as his scooter suddenly began spinning, almost throwing him off. Sheen clutched the handgrips and succeeded in bringing the rebellious vehicle back under control.

"Sheen, will you stop hotdogging?" Libby scolded.

"It's not me," protested Sheen. "This thing is unbalanced or something. Ever since I put this rifle on it this scooter tries to roll."

Libby snorted n exasperation. "You must have cut a stabilizer wire or something by mistake. You should have let me do it."

Her words were lost on Sheen, who continued to watch Gold Nine's plight in growing excitement. "Hey! Hey! Get away from him!"

The drone pursuing Gold Nine had more battle experience or better system benchmarks than most, and the Felangian guard was fully aware that he was clearly outmatched. "I could use some help if anyone is available," he grunted as he threw his small ship back and forth to avoid the deadly barrage that was dogging him.

The message was too much for Sheen. Pausing a second to pull his mask down a bit lower he dove in intent pursuit of Gold Nine's assailant. Shocked by this unexpected move, Libby called out, "Sheen! No! We're just supposed to observe!"

"Can't hear you, Libs," Sheen transmitted back, making an odd gurgling noise in his throat. "Too much static."

Libby noticed that Sheen, whom the drones had heretofore ignored, had attracted the attention of several hostiles with his impulsive actions. Gritting her teeth, Libby gunned her engines and took after the drones in hot pursuit of Sheen. "No boyfriend is worth this," she objected vehemently to herself.

Gold Nine had finally spotted the closest of his pursuers and was doing his best to shake the determined drone by dodging and weaving suicidally close to the many towers and other projections that peppered the surface of the Video Star. Try as the Felangian might, however, the seasoned adversary behind him succeeded in matching his erratic flight path maneuver for maneuver while continually shepherding his wildly dodging prey towards an impossibly constricted collection of phasing columns. Gold Nine was aware that he would have to make one of two choices: pull up and face almost certain destruction from his attacker's guns, or fly into the obstacles ahead and face certain annihilation. As miniscule as the advantage it gave him was he pulled up, seconds before colliding with one of the massive columns. As expected, the pursuing drone behind opened fire as the Gold Nine's scooter moved into its sights…only to dissolve into flaming debris with its companion as Sheen's gun ripped into the drone's craft, shredding the craft's energy control circuitry. "Gotcha!" Sheen exulted.

Sensing rather than hearing the explosion, Gold Nine looked back to see the fine cloud of metallic ruin that had been a lethal enemy drifting towards the station below. "Thank you, whoever you are," he transmitted in relief.

"No problem," Sheen radioed back with a wave.

A volley of energy bolts flashing past made them both suddenly aware of their still dire situation. Sheen twisted around, trying to spot the new threat, but in doing so unbalanced his scooter and began to again spin hopelessly out of control, veering sharply away from Gold Nine and down towards the station below him. The leader of the pursuing drones compared Gold Nine's controlled if unimpressive flight path as he sped away with Sheen's wild astrobatics that, miraculously, avoided a number of deadly obstacles as the small scooter spun crazily past them. Coming to a decision, the leader opened its communication circuits. "Forget him," it transmitted to two of the craft in pursuit of Gold Nine. "Stay on the leader."

Sheen managed to regain control of his small ship just in time to spot the six enemy craft as they dove down on him. "Oh, man!" he muttered in exasperation. He opened his scooter's throttle and sped away, hoping that sheer speed might carry him to safety. As small and light as his vehicle was, however, the hostile enemy ships were also built for speed and maneuverability. Bolts of destructive energy rained down around Sheen, leaving ugly, charred craters on the surface just meters below him, as he dodged wildly and looked for a chance to escape. As the chase continued, however, it gradually dawned on the leader drone that the firepower chewing up the station below was somewhat more than his own forces could supply. Looking back, he saw another one-man scooter, firing down upon them.

"You stay away from my boyfriend!" Libby shrieked, blasting furiously away at the enemy ships with almost maniacal abandon.

The drones had been programmed to face many potential hazards and battle scenarios, but the unbridled wrath of an 11-year-old girl protecting her boyfriend was not one of them. For several fateful seconds the mechanicals evaluated their situation, seconds that they could not afford to spend. Libby never knew what her stray shots hit, but whatever it was clearly did not like being exposed to high-energy plasma bolts. The surface erupted in a spectacular fireball that billowed directly in front of the drone ships and consumed two of them before they could react. The next pair swerved in a desperate attempt to avoid the incandescent doom in front of them, only to collide with inconvenient obstacles to either side of them. The last two, having the luxury of a few more seconds, succeeded in avoiding both the fiery column before them and the numerous flight hazards surrounding them and sped off into the distance to search for easier targets. Libby glared after them as they left, shaking her fist in their direction. "That's right, you better run!" she shouted. "And don't you even _think_ about coming back!"

That accomplished, she then scanned the area below for Sheen. He had already passed the location of the fireball when it went up…or had he? Her anger melted into concern and then to worry when she could find no traces of Sheen. "Rogue Three to Rogue Four," she radioed. "Do you copy? Rogue Four, come in." Panic began to creep into her voice as she continued to transmit. "Sheen, are you there? Sheen, this is Libby. Come in, Sheen. _Please_ come in. Talk to me. Sheen, are you there?"

"I'm here, Libby," she heard Sheen's voice say, and relief washed over her like a cool wave on a hot day.

Libby paused briefly to recover her composure before continuing. "Sheen, are you all right?"

"I got a little cooked but I'm okay," Sheen replied, lifting a hand to wipe some moisture from his brow. "I just…" He broke in confusion and his next words shocked and frightened Libby. "No! It can't be!" Sheen cried. "No-o-o-o!"

"Sheen! What is it? What's wrong?" Libby squoze the handgrips of her scooter until her knuckles were white she could almost feel the tendons in her hands cracking. "Sheen, answer me!"

"My eyebrows," Sheen blubbered. "The heat must have melted them. And I just sprayed them on a couple days ago." His tormented voice rose to a crescendo. "Why me?"

Libby took several long moments to calm herself before daring to say anything. And when she did, it was, "No boyfriend is worth this!"

In the main control room Meldar had been studying the transmission monitors and watching the scenes of battle from the mobile video remotes with satisfaction. "This is great stuff!" he exulted as one of the Felangian scooters flamed into nothingness, the latest victim of combined attacks of several of the station's battle drones. "Our ratings will go through the roof!"

"It does appear that virtually every system is tuned in," confirmed a drone that was manning one of the monitoring stations.

"Excellent." Meldar turned to address a drone that approached him. "What is it? I thought you were keeping an eye on the backup communications system."

"Yes, sir," the drone replied. "But one of the remote surveillance teams has reported a disturbance and that I thought you should know."

"What disturbance? Where?"

"Sector Tango X-ray Nine-Seven-Three." The drone touched a button on console and a slowly rotating hologram of the Video Star shimmered into existence before them. A target graticule materialized and centered on the indicated coordinates. "There appears to have been some minor damage to a stabilizer bank."

Meldar frowned. "That's nowhere near the fighting," he said. "What's happening there now?"

"We've lost communications with both crews. But before that, one team sent this visual." The drone touched another button and transferred a somewhat blurry image to a small monitor screen. The recording showed a rapid sequence of confused images, culminating in a final scene of the Video Star's surface spinning up towards the camera before abruptly ending in a black screen with the stark message "Communications Lost".

The images meant little to the drone, but Meldar thought he had spotted something. "Rewind and replay at half speed," he ordered. The drone complied and the visual proceeded at a reduced pace until Meldar snapped, "Freeze!" He peered at the still image and pointed to a small speck on one side of the display. "Enlarge that." The drone obeyed, manipulating several controls so that the speck grew in size. Although the final enlargement was blurry and washed out, there was no mistaking the image of the brown-haired boy in the rocket. What escaped Meldar's lips was more like a vicious animal's growl than human speech. "_Neutron._"

At that moment every light and glowing panel in the room flickered and grew perceptibly dimmer, sending every drone into a frenzy of activity. "We've suffered a major power failure," the chief control drone reported.

"Well, fix it!" Meldar ordered. "Do I have to figure these things out myself?"

A pair of drones huddled over a bank of instruments straightened. "It appears that one of the main power relays in Sector Alpha Zero had opened," one said.

Meldar scowled. "Well, close it!"

"Unable to comply," the other drone replied. "It appears to be mechanically jammed."

"Why me? _Why me?_" Meldar snarled. He paced back and forth several times and came to a decision. "All right. I want all our currently deployed forces to disengage and head to Neutron's last reported position. Also, dispatch all our reserves and send them to intercept using Neutron's last known course. We'll catch him between our forces and put an end to him once and for all. In the meantime, get that power relay fixed." He tossed himself into his command chair and leaned forward expectantly. "And don't anyone mess this one up. _I want that shot!_"

Skimming low over the station, Jimmy and Cindy continued their course towards the thermal dissipation array that was Jimmy's target. Jimmy had said nothing for some time and Cindy wondered if he had encountered a problem. "Something wrong, Neutron?"

"For the last time, that's Rogue Leader to you. And maintain radio silence."

"Like that's going to help us."

"It might. Just because -" Jimmy stopped abruptly and exclaimed, "The power levels have dropped nearly 50 One of the generators is off-line! Carl did it!"

Cindy sounded incredulous. "He did?"

"Yes. Now if we just…uh-oh." Jimmy studied his tracking screen and his voice sounded strained. "Bad news. It looks like the battle drones are breaking off their attack and headed this way."

"How long until they get here?"

Jimmy did some quick mental calculations. "Not long. But I think I'll have destroyed the target and be safely away well before they get here. It's time for you to get out."

Cindy shook her head, even though Jimmy couldn't see her. "I'm not leaving my wingman, Neutron. I'm not a quitter. You should know that by now."

"There's no reason for you to be here any more," Jimmy argued. "They know I'm here. And there's no way for you to cover me if they do get here faster than I expected. There's too many of them."

"No way. I'm not going." She hunched down grimly. "We're in this together…until the end." _Whatever that end might be_, she told herself.

Cindy could be both an exasperation and inspiration and Jimmy gave up trying to convince her to leave. "All right then. But keep quiet. I need to concentrate." He resumed scrutinizing his controls. "I've got only one shot at the target, so I can't be distracted or make any mistakes."

Cindy's voice was hesitant. "Only one shot at the target?"

"Yes. Now be quiet."

"That's really too bad," she continued, despite Jimmy's order.

"Why is that too bad?" demanded Jimmy.

Cindy pointed behind her. "Because I think we just passed it."

Jimmy snapped his head around and directed his attention to where Cindy was pointing. She was correct: Jimmy recognized the massive dissipating fins covering the surface. "Gas planets!" he exclaimed. "We're going too fast for my targeting system to get a lock!" He wrenched the controls of the Strato and veered around with Cindy in close pursuit. "We have to circle around and come in slower."

"Slower?" Cindy couldn't believe her ears. "We'll never be able to avoid those battle drones! Can't you just fire from here?"

"Listen," Jimmy told her, "this torpedo is fairly crude. It's going to take time for it to compute its course to target. If I fire too close it will probably overshoot. If I fire from too far away it won't be able to lock on." He fell silent as he re-evaluated the situation. "Those drones will be here before we can get clear. I'm not even sure I can get the shot off by the time they show up. I want you out of here. You'll never survive if you stay with me."

Cindy's tone was firm even though she felt as though her stomach had dropped from beneath her. "I thought we settled that. Just target those dissipators and fire that torpedo, Neutron. Fast." She swallowed. "I'll be okay."

Jimmy turned to his controls to slow the ship and line up for another attack run. "Goddard," he said quietly, "I want you to direct all your sensors aft. Blast anything hostile that's coming up behind Cindy. Don't let them get a shot off if you can."

Goddard barked an affirmative and positioned himself for action. His visual receptors could already discern small points of light growing rapidly in size as they closed the distance. At the same time Jimmy noted more dots appearing ahead of him on his tracking screen. Although slightly further off than the pursuing ships, they would reach him first as their flight speed added to the Strato's own. As he wondered if he should let Cindy know a bright red dot representing the pre-programmed target appeared on the screen and began to blink. "I have the target," Jimmy reported, his voice tense. "Two minutes to target lock."

"Good to know," Cindy replied, her voice equally strained. An intermittent tone began to sound from her console as the hostile craft behind her sought to lock their targeting systems onto to her ship. "Just to remind you, we've got company and they aren't feeling very hospitable."

Jimmy didn't dare look back. "Take evasive action. Don't let them get a solid lock on you." _One minute, forty-five seconds._

Cindy was already throwing her ship back and forth, doing whatever she could to silence the unnerving wail of her targeting lock alarm. "Gee, ya think?" was all she said. Goddard fired several laser blasts at the closest pursuers and was rewarded as one of the battle drones' craft spun out of control into space. The alert tone cut off and Cindy felt a wave of relief wash over her, however short-lived she knew it might be. "Thanks, Goddard."

As the seconds dragged by Jimmy continued to calculate the arrival times of the approaching spacecraft and compare it with the time remaining for the torpedoes target lock. It quickly became obvious that he would not be able to launch before their attackers would be upon them and put a swift and terrible end to their mission. If they only had thirty seconds more…if he hadn't been so stupid as to overfly the target the first time… "Cindy," he said, although he knew it was hopeless, "there are more ships coming in ahead of us as well behind us. You have just enough time to get clear. Once you're clear, I'll fire the torpedo. There's no guarantee that it will hit, but there's a chance." _One minute._

Cindy continued to jockey her ship around, the tone from her cockpit speaker quavering as the tiny rocket slipped in and out of her adversary's target lock. "Like I really believe that, Neutron. You won't fire until you're sure the torpedo will hit." There was a flash off her port side as one of the following scooters chanced a shot without a solid lock, rocking the small craft. "Well, I'm staying until you launch that torpedo."

"There's no time to argue!"

"Then stop arguing!" Cindy glanced back and was alarmed at how close the nearest scooter was behind her. "Stick to business and launch that torpedo!"

The closest pursuer patiently manipulated its targeting controls to lock on to Cindy's ship. It had also picked up the approaching signals and knew that there was no place for the fleeing ships to run. It was only a matter of seconds before it acquired target lock on the ship running interference, and once that was destroyed the lead ship would quickly follow. As the drone considered the reward that Meldar would surely confer for its superlative service it finally succeeded in acquiring target lock on Cindy's rocket. A sense of supreme accomplishment, almost akin to the human emotion of pleasure, registered in the mechanical's processing unit. _I have you now_, it computed.

The warning tone of the targeting lock indicator filled the cockpit of the Fire-Drill, frazzling Cindy's already raw nerves. In the Strato XL, Jimmy heard the tone over his speaker and knew all too well what it meant. He started to plead with Cindy once more to get clear, but a look ahead showed him it was already too late. Time seemed to drag almost to a stop as he saw emerald streaks of energy crawling from the approaching ship towards him. _So close_, he thought dully as the beams lazily drew nearer. _We were so close. But I guess that no one will ever know just how close._ He watched almost indifferently as the lethal beams streaked over and past the Strato XL, barely missing the ship, and he turned his head to follow their path, wondering in some part of his numbed brain if the pilot had miscalculated or had been targeting Cindy all along.

Cindy, for her part, barely noticed the vessels in front of her as she concentrated only on the ship she knew was ready to vaporize her. "Never leave your wingman," she whispered fiercely to herself like a mantra, or a charm, or maybe a prayer. "Never leave your wingman." For a brief second she caught a flash of bright green as something – or several somethings – whizzed past her, followed by something large and dark and something else fast and pink that blurred by. The pursuit drones watched in confusion as they suddenly found themselves under attack by spacecraft unlike any they had ever seen before. The lead drone, in final coherent moments of its existence, could only register incomprehension as its attacker appeared to be a demonic bat, accompanied by – of all things – a large pink butterfly. Once the last of the hostile drones were dispatched the odd vehicles wheeled about and returned to escort Jimmy and Cindy's ships. "You're all clear, Neutron," Jimmy and Cindy heard a familiar voice say. "Now let's blow this thing and go home."

Cindy could hardly believe her eyes or ears as she stared at the Bat Out of Heck ship with the familiar figure at the controls. "Nick?"

"You got it." Nick stretched and seemed almost bored. "It feels kind of good to get back in this thing."

"But…but I don't understand," Jimmy stammered in confusion. "I left those things in a parking orbit in the asteroid belt. How did you get them? And how did you get the weapons?"

"How do you think?" another voice, more acerbic, voice asked him. Jimmy turned his head in time to see Zix and Travoltron pull alongside in another spaceship of unfamiliar design. "We were minding our business on Mos Slimey when Meldar went a little too far for our taste."

"We saw what they did to Tee," Travoltron clarified. "When you mess with one of us…"

"…you mess with all of us," Zix finished. "Funny thing is, while Travoltron and I were considering what to do, a fellow showed up on Mos Slimey with a business proposition we just couldn't refuse. I mean, he was practically giving away state-of-the-art Yolkian military hardware." He rubbed his chin thoughtfully. "In fact, if we'd held out a little longer, I think he might actually have paid us to take it. Anyway, we take the stuff and high-tail it to Retroville, where find this nice bunch of kids in the Candy Bar looking for something to do."

"And this pretty girl here named Betty told us about these spaceships that we could use if we'd take them there," Travolton continued. "So we take them there, hook up the weapons, and here we are."

"I should have known," Jimmy said. He looked at Betty Quinlan in Carl's old Flutterby ship and smiled. "I guess I can always count on my friends."

"Believe it, Jimmy," Betty smiled back.

Cindy seethed inwardly at Betty and Jimmy's much-too-friendly (she thought) expressions. "Hey, Romeo," she snapped. "Don't you think you should get back to launching that torpedo?"

Startled, Jimmy looked down at his tracking screen. "Leaping leptons!" he exclaimed. "You're right! Fifteen seconds to launch." He flipped a switch, arming the torpedo for launch. "When I give the word, everyone scram out of here. We have to be a hundred million miles away when this thing blows."

"And I think," Cindy went on with an icy stare at Betty, "that Neutron and I have it covered from here."

Betty simply smiled, making Cindy boil with her nonchalance. "You got it. He's all yours, Cindy. Come on, Nick. I think the others may need a hand taking out the other drones."

"Roger that," Nick answered. "Let's show those wind-up toys who they're messing with."

Zix nodded. "Right behind you."

The ships pulled away and sped off behind Jimmy and Cindy, and Jimmy returned to his targetting controls. With no one now chasing or trying to annihilate them the few seconds to torpedo launch seemed almost longer to Cindy, and she almost wondered if Jimmy were daydreaming about Betty rather than keeping his mind on business. But eventually he pressed a button and the torpedo sped on its way, its sensors homing in on the massive amounts of heat being radiated into space by the thermal dissipation array. Moments later Cindy saw a brilliant flash as the torpedo detonated, hopelessly vaporizing the critical cooling elements.

"Okay," Jimmy told Cindy as they changed course, "that's that. Now let's notify the others to get out of here as fast as they can."

"But what about Carl?" Cindy asked. "Aren't we going to try to get him out of there?"

"Everyone inside will abandon the station once they realize what's happened," Jimmy assured her. "Trust me. He'll be just as safe as we will when the station goes up." He didn't tell her that was because Carl, like the rest of them, had no chance of getting out of range before the Video Star exploded.

No chance at all.

End of Chapter 33


	34. Crash of the Titans

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 34:

In the main control room of the Video Star, Meldar Prime watched the unfolding events with mounting disbelief and fury. Just as he had been about to realize his much-anticipated goal of eliminating Neutron, two ships of unknown and completely unorthodox design had appeared to destroy his pursuers. At almost the same time a dozen other ships had arrived to engage the main body of battle drones to trap the hapless mechanicals between them and the Felangians following close behind. As Meldar stared in utter disbelief, a phalanx of what appeared to be a giant octopus, a Ferris wheel, and something Meldar couldn't even identify spun through the drones like pinwheels of destruction, cutting a wide swath of destruction through the enemy forces and leaving the smaller craft and Felangians to dispatch the few survivors who scattered in confusion.

"What in the five rings of Felgercarb is going on?" Meldar bellowed in frustration. He jabbed a finger at a monitor showing the Octo-puke as it spun lazily past. "And where did those things come from?"

"Unknown," the drone manning the console reported. "Analysis shows the motive propulsion to be similar to that of the Neutron craft, but weaponry is consistent with Yolkian technology." The screen went black as a stray bolt of energy destroyed the transmitter. "Enemy ships are inflicting serious damage on station forces. Tactical analysis suggests withdrawal or capitulation."

The suggestion that he retreat or surrender was enough to harden Meldar's resolve. "No way. Not again. _Not this time!_" He resumed his seat, seething with anger. "Are we within range of Earth yet?"

One of the drones evaluated the proximity readings on the screen before it. "Five Earth minutes until target is in range."

Meldar rubbed his hands in grim satisfaction. "Fine. We may have lost this battle, but Neutron still loses the war. Once we're within range, lock all communications beams on Earth and fire. We'll turn that mudball of a planet into a charcoal briquet. Despite everything that's gone wrong with this operation, it could still be worse."

He had hardly finished speaking when a faint but unmistakeable shudder went through the station. "It's worse," a drone announced.

The little alien swung on the drone with blood in his eye, as though the drone were the sole cause of all his troubles. "Now what?"

"It appears," the mechanical replied carefully, "that the station has been by a struck by a small missile of unclassified design." It scanned a bank of readouts and debated whether volunteering further information was logical or in its best interests. Meldar's murderous glare was enough to sway its decision. "The target was the main thermal dissipation array. The array has been completely disabled and virtually all the station's systems are in the initial stages of catastrophic thermal runaway." As Meldar absorbed this announcement, stunned by its enormity, the drone offered a final observation that it hoped was helpful. "Immediate evacuation is advised."

That shook Meldar partly out of his stupor. "What?" The implication of the drone's statement was too much for him to fathom all at once and he sought further clarification, somehow hoping that he had misunderstood the implications of the statement. "Are you saying that this station is going to be _destroyed?_"

"Immediate evacuation is advised," the drone repeated tonelessly.

Meldar didn't answer at once. He drifted aimlessly about the room as the drone mechanically repeated the warning, staring about him without seeing anything. _Neutron_, was all he could think. Once again he had been frustrated in his plans by the meddlesome Earth boy, his mechanical dog, and his juvenile friends. _I should have known_, he thought bitterly. _Never,_ never,_ work with kids or animals._ And what for the love of nebula had happened to Grod?

Some time earlier in Sector Alpha Zero at the heart of the Video Star Grod advanced ominously towards Lord Versile while Carl cowered miserably behind the sinister shape and tried to remain unseen. The towering form of the dark lord still filled him with fear, but not the blinding terror the hulking battle drone inspired. Versile seemed undaunted by the approach of the massive automaton and did not withdraw. "State your purpose here," was all he said.

"Yours is not to question, underling," Grod rasped as it continued to advance. "Where are the intruders?"

"What happens here is _my_ concern," Versile replied. "You will withdraw."

"Where are the intruders?" Grod repeated as it halted before unmoving figure. "Their presence threatens the security of this station. They must be eliminated."

"The security of this station is my concern." For the first time since encountering the dark lord Carl thought he heard a note of anger in Lord Versile's voice.

Grod's answer was terse. "This station and all aboard it is Meldar's."

The anger in Versile's voice was unmistakable now and the words rumbled like distant thunder. "It was I who created this station, not Meldar. It exists because of me. What happens here happens because I ands I alone will it."

"Your will is irrelevant. You will obey." The menace in the synthesized words was almost palpable, so much so that Carl pulled back involuntarily. As he did so one of his shoes squeaked against the polished metal deck and drew Grod's unwanted attention. The photoreceptors in the cranial turret briefly regarded the huddled form and then turned back to Lord Versile. "You shield an enemy, Lord Versile." The drone's massive arms rose, reconfiguring into what even Carl could recognize were energy weapons of unimaginable power, and leveled on Versile. "Stand aside."

The dark shape refused to move. "By Meldar's own word what happens to the Royal Guard is my concern, not yours."

"It is no longer your concern," Grod responded. "Both he and the others attacking this station will be eliminated, as will all who oppose Meldar's will."

"That was not the agreement," Versile countered. "The Felangians were to be spared."

The next words were a mocking echo of Versile's own. "He is altering the bargain. Pray he does not alter it any further." There was a faint whine as powerful turbogenerators activated somewhere within the great torso and an ominous glow emanated from the twin muzzles of Grod's weapons. "Stand aside."

For a moment Lord Versile remained immobile and unmoving, and an unreasoning hope of unexpected salvation filled Carl. Then the dark lord shrugged almost imperceptibly and stepped aside. "As you wish."

The deadly weapons shifted slightly to target Carl. As the faint whine of the weapons' charging systems increased in volume Carl could only stare at the glow coming from the barrels of the energy cannons. He did not feel afraid. He did not feel anything as he crouched on the floor, neither fearing nor welcoming the withering blast he knew was about to envelope him. As time slowed to a crawl it seemed to him that he was simply a spectator, at his home with Jimmy and Sheen at his side, watching an Ultra-Lord show unfold on a television screen. He thought that could almost see the flare of destruction erupt from the muzzles trained on him and felt a remote twinge of regret that he wouldn't be able to see the end of the show with Jimmy and Sheen. As this passed through his mind he felt mild surprise as something blurred past his field of view, followed by a silent explosion of radiance that left him dazzled and blinking. When Carl's vision cleared again he saw Lord Versile once again between him and the menacing battle drone. In a wall to one side two blackened holes smoldered where Grod's blasts had struck, deflected by the laser sword now in Lord Versile's black-gloved hand.

"Traitor." The word from Grod was as much a judgment as a conclusion. The energy cannons turned on on Versile, who, although unfamiliar with his new weapon, wielded the laser sword with a skill possible only to a High Captain of the Felangian Royal Guard.

"This station is mine," Versile repeated harshly as he circled his armored foe. "It stands or falls by my will, and mine alone."

Grod fired again, only to see its bolts again deflected as Versile's glowing blade traced an intricate series of arcs intended to protect him while bewildering his opponent. As the drone paused to reconsider its strategy Versile lunged forward to deliver three swift blows in succession on its torso. The blade scored but did not penetrate the Grod's armor. Given enough time the searing energy would be able to pierce the thick metal, but the brief moment of opportunity was hardly long enough. Abandoning its attempts to blast the dark lord, Grod decided to counter-attack physically. It brought a huge fist down in an attempt to crush Versile, but Versile spun deftly aside to dodge the attack. Grod's fist struck the deck like an explosion, leaving the metal dented and twisted.

The two combatants paused to assess the situation, each aware that neither had a decisive advantage over the other. While the two silently regarded each other, Carl waited in apprehension, forgotten for the moment. He was aware that, once the battle was over, he would be at the mercy – or lack thereof – of the victor. At the same time he was aware that, if the battle continued much longer, Jimmy's attack on the station could put an end to them all. It was a decidedly uncomfortable situation. As he was fretting over what to do when the lighting in the chamber dimmed, briefly startling him. At the same time Lord Versile staggered as though he had been struck by an unseen fist. A second later Grod's very substantial fist struck him, sending him flying to crash against a bulkhead and crumple to the floor.

"Your powers are weak, old one," Grod observed. It closed in, training its energy weapons on its downed enemy. "You should not have turned back." Again the weapons spat fiery destruction. Versile somehow managed to block one of the blasts with the laser sword. The other tore into his shoulder, turning it into a molten mass of metal and plastic. The laser sword dropped to the deck from Versile's now useless arm and Grod re-oriented his weapons for the final blow. "Prepare to terminate."

Carl, fully aware that Grod had gained the upper hand, screamed and scampered towards the door through which Tee, Exjay Nine, and Bubo had passed earlier. Reminded by the noise of the boy's presence Grod spun and fired in his direction. Grod's haste, or perhaps fate, spared Carl as the twin bolts burned into either side of the opening just as Carl dove through it. Concluding correctly that the human could not escape Grod turned its attention back to Versile, who had taken advantage of the brief distraction to recover his weapon. It was a feeble gesture at best, he knew. Weakened by the shutdown of one of the matrix generators, it was only a matter of moments before Grod put an end to him.

Tee and Exjay Nine looked up in surprise and Carl ran into the chamber. "You done already?" Tee asked, both impressed and dubious that Carl had triumphed over Versile. "That was fast. Real fast."

Carl shook his head, out of breath from his frantic sprint. "No," he answered. "We're in trouble. Grod is out there. He's fighting Versile. And he's winning."

"Lord Versile?" Exjay Nine seemed surprised. "Is he on our side now?"

"I don't know." Carl paused for breath. "But he's not on Grod's. And if Grod wins he'll destroy all of us."

"Not much difference between Versile destroying us or Grod destroying us," Tee observed. "We'll die either way. That's no good."

Exjay Nine eyed the instrument panels. "It seems more likely that everyone will die when the thermal runaway causes the station to explode," he offered helpfully.

Tee glared at the robot. "Hush your mouth, fool!" he barked. "I don't mind going out for a good cause. But I don't like being reminded of it, neither."

"There must be something we can do," Carl persisted. "I don't want to blow up if I have a choice."

Exjay Nine surveyed the chamber. The matrix generator had been shut down and the relays fused, so that the destruct process was now irreversible. At the same time Grod and Versile blocked the only escape route. "I regret that there doesn't seem much we can do," he concluded. "Can you think of anything, Bubo?"

There was no answer. Looking about the three realized that Bubo was no longer in the chamber. Tee was the first to speak. "I knew it!" he declared. "I knew we couldn't trust Cue Ball. As soon as he heard both his friends were out there he decided to take off. If I ever see him again, I'll squish him. Squish him good. "

Carl looked miserable. "That still doesn't tell us what to do."

Tee made up his mind. "Well, I know what I'm going to do." He started towards the exit. "If I'm going down, I'm going down fighting, not stuck in here like some chump flark in a trap. The only question I have is which of those two fools I'll be fighting when I go down."

Carl and Exjay Nine looked after him and then at each other. As grim as hopeless situations are, they offer their victims the absolute freedom of having nothing left to lose. After a silent moment of thought the boy and robot hurried to catch up with Tee.

Bubo had not deserted his new friends. Upon hearing that his former master was in danger he reacted almost without realizing it by speeding to the rescue, driven by both his previous programming and his new understanding of loyalty. When he entered the impromptu arena the engine of destruction called Grod was pressing its final attack on Lord Versile. Sheer determination combined with consummate skill and some luck had saved Lord Versile from complete destruction but not from further damage. One of his legs was now only partially functioning and he hobbled away from Grod, holding the laser sword defensively before him. Bubo took only microseconds to analyze the situation before acting. He sped towards the two combatants and began whizzing around Grod's cranial turret, as elusive and distracting as an excited bee in an automobile. Grod attempted without success to swat the annoying robot away, realizing that there was no way that it could target the small orb with its energy weapons.

"You return," was Versile's only comment. He watched carefully for a clear opening, knowing that he would have to deliver his attack with surgical precision. He knew that there was no hope of him breaching the battle drone's armor, so his strokes would have to target the joints, the only vulnerable points in all the metal monster's defenses.

"Miss me?" Bubo answered back. He continued to trace his dizzying orbits around Grod, doing his best to obstruct the behemoth's vision while keeping away from its wildly flailing arms. As limited as the battle drone's computing capacity was, it was designed for destruction and Bubo was not. It was all the small robot could do to monitor Grod's actions, anticipate the drone's next action, and compute possible responses. That was Bubo's fatal error. He was so absorbed in determining his battle tactics that, unlike Grod, he did not realize until too late that his trajectory pattern was no longer random. It did not take long for Grod's tracking computers to analyze Bubo's trajectory, its predictors to determine where the small robot would be, and its motivators to place its hand directly in Bubo's path. Unable to change course in time Bubo found himself in the ever-tightening grip of Grod's fist.

"Did you think that you could win?" the drone rasped, keeping an eye on Versile.

Internal systems reported multiple alarms as Bubo's structure began to fragment under the relentless pressure. "My friends needed help."

The answer made no sense to Grod. "Friends are valueless. They have destroyed you."

Bubo's retort was grainy and broken as his speech synthesizer began to fail. "Taught me…more than…you'll ever know."

The mounting pressure on Bubo's outer surface halted as Grod paused to extract possibly valuable enemy intelligence. "Clarify."

The faint sound of relays closing came from inside Bubo and his voice, although faint, was clear. "My best trick."

Lord Versile immediately grasped the meaning of the statement and ducked just as the small robot and much of the appendage holding him disappeared in a deafening explosion. The blast was far too small to destroy Grod, but it stared uselessly at the ruined stump of its arm as its processor sought in vain to ascertain the meaning of what had just happened. As it did so, Versile seized his one chance and sprang towards the momentarily immobilized drone. In one smooth motion he brought the laser sword down through the elbow joint of Grod's other arm, detaching it, and spun about to bring the energy blade through the narrow gap below the cranial turret. The severed mechanical skull spun across the metal deck to rest not far from where Bubo's still glowing photoreceptor had landed. For several seconds Grod's photoreceptors continued to shine like beacons of malice, before the small energy reserves contained in the turret failed and they faded into black. Only then, as through satisfied that the enemy had been vanquished, did Bubo's photoreceptor go dark as well.

When Carl, Tee, and Exjay Nine arrived less than a minute later, they found Grod's decapitated hulk lying inert on the deck and the shattered remnants of Bubo strewn across the room. Lord Versile's ruined form sat propped against a bulkhead, unmoving. Despite their dire situation the three stopped to survey the scene.

"It looks like it was a draw," commented Tee, nudging Grod's severed head with the toe of his boot.

Exjay Nine picked up a piece of Bubo's outer casing, noting to himself that it had been destroyed from within. "I wonder."

"Whatever happened, we'd best get out of here. Although I have no idea how we're going to do that before everything goes kaboom." Tee hurried through the entryway to the chamber, followed by Exjay Nine.

Carl, however, lagged behind, something he could not identify drawing him towards Lord Versile's still form. He crouched down and stared into the electronic visage that had been the face behind the dark mask. He was not surprised to hear a now-familiar voice. "Carl."

"I'm here," was all Carl could say.

"You were right," the voice said. "Leama didn't need the lies of Lord Versile to protect her. All she ever needed was her father. And he must always be there for her when she needs him."

"Then I have to bring you back to her," Carl said.

The voice was quiet but firm. "No. I'm a just another lie, one that must end here."

Carl was confused. "But if I don't take you back, how can you be there for here?"

"She has her memories of a father, one who died a hero. She nearly lost them, but you saved them for her in time." The voice became pleading. "Promise me that you won't take them from her again."

Carl still didn't understand but made an 'X' over his heart anyway. "I promise."

"Thank you. I'm proud that my daughter chose her friends well. Now, go. Down the corridor on the left is a passage to a utility tunnel with a transport car that will take you to the outer levels. If you hurry, you and your friends can use it to reach your shuttle pod the hangar bay in time."

Tee's voice drifted back down the corridor. "Carl! You coming, fool?"

"Yes," Carl called back. "I'm coming." He rose to his feet and looked down at the still figure that had once filled him with dread and loathing. Now it seemed an old friend he did not wish to leave. "I have to go, now," he said. "But I'll never tell. I promise." There was no answer, and as Carl ran down the corridor to catch up with his friends he wondered if he had imagined it all. _Probably_, he decided. It was only later, when he, Tee, and Exjay Nine were speeding down the utility tunnel in the transport car that he realized there was no way for him to have known of the utility tunnel.

Back in Sector Alpha Zero the figure that had been Lord Versile sat immobile, but not inactive. As the Video Star's systems began one by one to overload he fought to maintain control over the active matrix generator as more and more power was drawn through it. Through the station's systems he could sense escape pods being jettisoned as Meldar Prime and the station's personnel evacuated the doomed construct, the transport car reaching the hangar bay, and the shuttle pod departing, leaving him alone. He felt no pain as the circuitry within him that controlled the matrix generator began to melt and the matrix generator itself became incandescent, held together long after it should have failed by his determination alone. _This station is mine_, he thought fiercely as the station's long-range sensors confirmed that the Felangian shuttle pod had reached the safe limit. _It stands or falls by my will, and mine alone._

And then, in a final burst of cosmic radiance, the Video Star was no more.

End of Chapter 34


	35. People Who Need People

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Chapter 35:

On the inner fringes of the asteroid belt is an unremarkable piece of rock approximately 2 miles across known only as NEO-1993-017 (being the 17th near-Earth object identified in the year 1993). Since its discovery by the astronomers at the Jodrell Bank Observatory the wildly eccentric orbit had been the only thing about the space rock worth noting, as its discoverers determined that NEO-1993-017's trajectory would result in a tragic but inevitable collision with the Earth. Since that date was several hundred thousand years away, however, the scientists promptly forgot all about the fragment of space debris after dutifully logging its discovery, and went back to evaluating the far more interesting topics of whether or not Pluto was really a planet, which _Star Trek_ captain was more believable, and whether alien females would really be all that interesting to date.

The asteroid's scheduled appointment with Earth hundreds of millennia in the future would not be its first meeting with humanity, however. It was to this cosmic rock that Jimmy had led the Video Star attackers and now almost two dozen humans were on its pitted surface, together with two reptilians and thirteen Felangians – all of the Royal Guard that had survived the fierce battle. Among the lucky few were Princess Leama and Captain Valtor. The less fortunate who had not returned included both Lieutenant Grikmar and the pilot designated Gold Nine, the young guard that Sheen had saved. The princess and Royal Guard stood apart from the others in silence as they offered their final thanks and bade their final farewells to their departed comrades, taking what solace they could from the knowledge they had fallen in a noble cause.

Nick was recounting his personal experiences in the battle to the classmates who had accompanied Zix and Travoltron to the Video Star, oblivious to the Felangians. "Yeah, it was dicey there a few times," he remarked with a practiced yawn, "but flying that spaceship was just like riding a skateboard to me."

Betty seemed unimpressed. "You mean you fell off, broke your leg, and screamed like a little girl?"

"Yeah, that's it," Nick went on, responding automatically before realizing what Betty had said. He glared at Butch and Ike, who were snickering. "What are you boneheads laughing at?"

Butch recovered his composure long enough to answer. "What she said. It's funny."

"Oh, is that so?" He turned on Betty, who regarded him coolly in return. "Are you trying to be funny?"

"Hardly. I just think that maybe this really isn't the time or place to build up the legend of Nick Dean."

Nick's frown deepened until it was nearly a snarl. "Are you saying that I wasn't out there risking my life to save the Earth?"  
"Not at all," Betty replied, and then swept her arm in a large semicircle to indicate the others gathered around them. "But join the crowd. You weren't the only one out there, Nick. We _all_ were. Yes, you led us all here and charged into the battle and scored some victories, but any way you look at it you were late getting here. Almost too late." She paused to let that sink in for Nick and the others and then went on in a smaller voice. "We _all_ were."

"Well, yeah…but…" spluttered Nick.

"No buts." Betty drew a deep breath to steady herself. "If you want to tell everyone about how a hero saved the world from being destroyed, then feel free to do it. But make sure you let them know who that hero really was."

Nick first looked perplexed, then indignant as he realized to whom Betty was referring. "Hey, Neutron couldn't have done it alone and he knows it!"  
"Of course Jimmy knows it," Betty snapped back. "Remember back at the Candy Bar? He asked us to come. He practically _begged_ us to, and we all turned him down. The only reason we're here is because we finally realized our own skins were at stake. But Jimmy came because he cared about what was going to happen to other people and came even when it meant coming alone."

"Hey, Sheen and Carl came with him!"

Betty rolled her eyes. "Like I said. But that's what being a hero is, Nick. It's not racing around the galaxy in a spaceship blasting bad guys. It's putting other people first when it matters, even when you may not make it back. Maybe you haven't learned that yet. But I guess I've grown up a little lately, and quite frankly your stories just don't impress me that much anymore."

Nick stood open-mouthed and speechless as Betty turned and walked away. When he was able to speak again, all he could mutter was, "Women. What do they know?" When he realized that the others were staring at him, he continued more loudly with, "Anyway, like I was saying…"

Sheen and Libby had kept apart from the other humans and had been joined by Zix and Travoltron. Sheen seemed to be the most affected by the loss of his friends and had a difficult time speaking. When did speak his voice was faint and quavering, and it was all he could do not to cry. "I can't believe that they're gone," he said. "Tee…and Carl…and Empee Three…"

Libby put an arm around Sheen, seeking to comfort both Sheen and herself. Now that the confusion of battle was behind them she was on the verge of tears himself. "Exjay Nine," she corrected him.

"Yeah, him," Sheen acknowledged. "They were like brothers to me. Well, two brothers and a faithful appliance, anyway…or maybe a brother and a large cold-blooded pet and a faithful appliance. I'm going to miss them all."

"Yes, they'll be missed," agreed Zix. "It won't be the same without that big dumb lug tagging along."

Travolton nodded. "His burritos were excellent," he added. "But so spicy."

"I was talking about Tee," Zix countered. "But I agree. Carl was a good egg, for a human. At least he went out doing what he loved doing."

"Fighting against evil?" asked Sheen as he wiped his nose with the back of his arm.

"Living," Zix replied.

Despite her own sorrow Libby regarded the two reptilians with curiosity. "You don't see too upset about them being gone. I can sort of understand why you wouldn't be too broken up about Carl and Exjay Nine because you didn't know them very well. But I'd think you'd be more upset than this about Tee. He was your friend. Don't you have hearts?"

"Two, actually," was Travoltron's answer. "But only three chambers each."

"And yes, Tee was our friend," Zix added. "And he always will be. That kind of friendship doesn't end with his life here because his life doesn't end here. We believe that when someone's part here is over, your life goes on but just in a different place – some good, some not so good. I think that Tee's in a good place, continuing his journey and fulfilling a purpose that will go on and on and on."

"Oh." Sheen sniffled as he absorbed this. "You mean like summer school."

Cindy had kept apart from everyone else, her attention fixed on Jimmy. All during the trip from the doomed space station he had seemed distracted and had answered her questions and comments with non-committal grunts. Since reaching NEO-1993-017 his actions had become even more erratic and he paced back and forth in agitation. "This isn't right," she heard him mutter. "Something's gone wrong."

"What's gone wrong?" she asked.

Jimmy barely heard her. All during their flight from the Video Star he had been expecting the blast that would destroy the station to incinerate them before they even reached the halfway mark to a safe distance. When the time he had calculated came and went without incident he had felt a confused mixture of relief that they were still alive with the apprehension that something had gone wrong. As more time passed without the explosion he expected materializing he became more convinced that it had not been just an error in his calculations and that something – perhaps a plan of Meldar's that he had not anticipated – had prevented the Video Star's destruction.

"What's gone wrong?" Cindy demanded again, her voice brimming with impatience.

Jimmy faced her and his expression was bleak. "The station," he said. "It didn't blow up. It's still there."

"What?" Cindy tried to grasp the enormity of what Jimmy was telling her. "Are you sure? Maybe it's just too far away to see it."

"The blast radius of that explosion should have been close to 1 AU. We'd have seen it from outside the solar system." Jimmy consulted his wrist-comp before continuing. "From here, it would have looked like the sun, and it should have happened nearly ten minutes ago. In fact, we should all have been atomized about 50 million miles before we got here."

_Too much information_, Cindy thought numbly. _Too much information_. In the ensuing swirl of thoughts and emotions she grasped the first thing she could to steady herself, like a drowning man clutching at the closest piece of flotsam – unreasoning anger. "Are you saying," she ground out between her clenched teeth, "that we were all supposed to _die_ destroying that thing?"

"No one was even supposed to be there!" Jimmy argued back. "I didn't want anyone else there when it happened. I didn't plan on anyone else coming with me."

Cindy moved closer and planted herself directly in front of Jimmy. "And what did happen?" She jabbed a finger in what was her best guess as to the direction of the Video Star. "Absolutely nothing! We all risked our lives for _nothing_!"

Jimmy, his back now up, stood his ground. "You didn't have to come!"

"That's easy for you to say." Cindy grabbed Jimmy by the front of his shirt and dragged him closer. "I trusted you! We _all_ trusted you! And now Earth and everyone on it is going to be wiped out because your great plan isnt' going to work? Because your great plan was all talk and no -"

A flare of intense light, like an arc lamp switching on, abruptly surrounded them with a blinding radiance and shocking Cindy into stunned silence. Taken by surprise, Cindy acted instinctively and, like everyone else, clenched her eyes tightly shut against the glare. At the same time Jimmy, also acting on instinct alone, pulled her close in a protective hug. As Jimmy's mind began to function again, he became aware of the soft warmth of her cheek against his and her subtly different feminine form clinging to him that filled his mind with confusion of a different sort. Cautiously he opened an eye to survey their surroundings. Through the faint purple afterimage of the dazzling flash he could see that the light had faded and that a brilliant new star was now burning in the blackness above them. "It worked," he murmured softly. The worries and doubts that had been burdening his mind evaporated and he opened both eyes. "It worked!"

They others, on hearing Jimmy's shout, opened their own eyes and seeing the burning remnants of the Video Star above them and cheered spontaneously. Jimmy, aided by the nearly non-existent gravity, swung Cindy around in a circle of delight, leaving her more breathless and dizzy than she had felt in his close embrace. "It worked?" she repeated. She smiled weakly. "What…what was I saying?"

Jimmy returned her smile. "I think," he said as he drew her closer to him, "that you were saying something about 'all words and no fireworks'."

"Really?" Cindy laughed weakly. "I may have been wrong…a little."

That Cindy and Jimmy had been angry with each other a few moments before was meaningless at this moment. The energy of their recent emotions only worked to drive them closer to each rather than further away, and the two were suddenly very aware that their embrace has become more intimate. For the moment the only thing that mattered was that they were together, and as their lips moved closer together neither wanted to know about deadly space stations, or evil aliens, or saving a world that seemed so far away.

Reality jarred them back apart. "Oh, man, that was awesome!" they heard Sheen cry out as he and Libby ran up to them. "And just after we got here! What perfect timing, Jimmy!"

Cindy's look could have bored holes through granite, but Sheen's head was apparently made of more durable stuff. "Yes," she agreed tightly and somehow underlined each word that came out. "It's too bad more people don't have it."

Libby immediately grasped the situation and took Sheen by an ear. "Come on, Sheen. Let me explain some _dos_ and _don'ts_ of some social situations."

Cindy looked at Jimmy but the moment had passed. For a few precious moments they had been in their own world, but the world had once again found them. With the Video Star destroyed and Earth safe Jimmy's thoughts were now on the others that had not been so lucky. The unwelcome thoughts intruded into Cindy's mind as well and she searched for something that might somehow comfort Jimmy at this moment. "There was nothing you could do," was all she could come up with. "You did your best."

"And it wasn't enough," was Jimmy's bitter retort. "You were right. My great plan really was all words." He slumped down and covered his face, trying to hide the full depth of his despair. "There's always a way. I should have found it."

"So what about us?"

The voice was enough to pull Jimmy slightly out of his dark thoughts. He looked up and saw Betty Quinlan there, together with the other kids from Lindbergh Elementary, Zix, Travoltron, and the Felangians. "What?"

"I said, 'What about us?'. If there was a way, why do you think that you're the only who should have found it?" Betty waited a few seconds to let that sink in before continuing, using a finger to emphasize each point. "You may have been the first to realize that something had to be done. And you may be the smartest kid in school – maybe the world. But what makes you think that you're the only one who's responsible for what happens in this world? Well, not _this_ world," she corrected herself, "but _that_ world…the one we come from." She shook her head in frustration. "Whatever. You know what I mean.

"The fact is, it doesn't matter how smart, or popular, or athletic, or accident-prone someone is. That doesn't make them the only one who has to step up when things go bad. If one person could solve everything for everybody, he wouldn't have friends because he wouldn't _need_ any."

"But Carl…" Jimmy tried weakly.

Betty nodded. "Exactly, Jimmy. Carl knew what had to be done and he knew that you couldn't do it alone. So he did what he felt he had to do. Not because he was told to, but because he trusted that your way would work. That's why we're all here. Some of us just took longer to catch on that."

Captain Valtor nodded. "That is true. It is not easy for us to trust off-worlders. We are creatures of duty, and that duty says what we must do. But I begin to see that without trust to direct it, duty has no purpose."

Jimmy thought about that. He still had no idea how he would tell Carl's parents what had happened, but the thought that Carl had done what he had for him that had previously filled him with guilt now instilled a sense of pride and respect. The pain inside was still there, but understanding made it bearable. He looked at Betty and returned her warm smile with a weak one of his own.

The smiles were not lost on Cindy. She moved to place herself between them when a loud, shrilling noise startled her, stopping her in her tracks. "What's that?" she asked, shouting to be heard about the noise.

"Some kind of incoming message," Captain Valtor shouted back as he dashed to his scooter. He touched a button on is scooter's console, terminating the irritating wail, and studied a screen. "There's something coming in on a Felangian security frequency," he announced, frowning.

"Who is it?" Jimmy asked as he ran to the Strato XL.

"I don't know," was the High Captain's response, "but its direction is Universal Coordinates one-zero-two by -"

"Just point!" Libby called out in impatience.

Captain Valtor complied, indicated a region in the dark sky above them. As the others strained their eyes to see if they could make out the approaching craft Jimmy activated the viewscreen on the Strato and attempted to confirm Captain Valtor's report. "There's something there all right, and closing fast," he reported. "At its present speed I can't get a very clear image of it."

Leama moved next to Jimmy to study the blurry image. "It's a Felangian shuttle pod," she announced.

"That's not possible," Jimmy shook his head. "The only Felangian shuttle pod around was on the Video Star."

"Maybe it's from Felangie," suggested Cindy hopefully.

Captain Valtor shook his head. "They couldn't have located us and made it here so soon."

Jimmy began adjusting some controls on his communications panel. "Whoever it is, we should open a frequency and find out -"

"No!" The fierceness of Valtor's outburst startled Jimmy and everyone else nearby. "We must assume that this is some trick of the enemy's. If we answer they'll know exactly where we are. You could bring us all under attack."

"An attack?" Jimmy sounded surprised. "Is the pod armed?"

"No," the Felangian admitted. "But the main power reactor could be set to detonate. That would be more than enough to annihilate this asteroid and everything on it." He gestured and three of the Royal Guard moved to surround Jimmy, their weapons at the ready.

A voice from the Strato XL's speaker startled them. "Hello? Is anyone there?"

Cindy looked surprised. "That sounds like Exjay Nine," she observed.

"That can't be," objected Jimmy. "He was killed back on the station."

"Hello," the voice over the speaker repeated again. "This is Felangian shuttle pod, registration one-six-three-four-two, calling. This is an emergency. Anyone in range of this transmission, please respond."

Captain Valtor appeared grim. "It's a trick. Meldar must have launched a retaliatory strike just before the space station exploded."

"But what if it is Exjay Nine?" argued Cindy. "We have to help him."

"Too risky. We maintain radio silence."

"The pod's life support systems are nearly depleted," the voice continued. "Please respond. There are two organics aboard that will perish unless we obtain immediate assistance. Please answer."

"Two organics?" repeated Libby. "Could he mean Carl and Tee?"

"There's only one way to find out," answered Jimmy. Ignoring the Royal Guards surrounding him he moved to activate his transmitter, only to have one of the guards seize him by an arm and push him away. Jimmy looked at Princess Leama. "Princess, if there's any chance that the others are still alive, we have to answer."

"I strongly disagree, Your Highness," countered Captain Valtor. "Answering that transmission could endanger your life as well as the lives of everyone else here."

"If it is my life, then it is my choice to risk it," the princess responded. "As for the others, they are free to leave if they choose."

"I'm staying," said Jimmy.

Cindy moved next to him. "And so am I."

"And me," added Libby.

"Me, too," agreed Sheen.

By ones and twos the other humans quickly joined in, along with Zix and Travoltron. The Royal Guard hesitated, but their loyalty to the princess was clear and none moved to leave.

Princess Leama nodded in satisfaction. "Since we're all agreed, then let's proceed. Guards, stand down. Jimmy, please reply to the transmission."

Jimmy rapidly adjusted controls and spoke into the pickup. "Attention, Felangian shuttle pod. This is Jimmy Neutron of Earth. We are receiving. Over."

"Master Jimmy?" The voice sounded almost relieved. "This is Exjay Nine. I trust you and your companions are well."

"We're fine. What is your status? Who is with you?"

"Sir Wheezer and Mister Tee are with me -" the voice began, but the spontaneous cheers from the humans drowned out the rest of the message.

"What's that?" Jimmy said, making frantic motions to shush the others. "Please repeat."

"I said," the transmitter continued, "that Sir Wheezer and Mister Tee are with me, but the shuttle pods life support systems are nearly depleted. I'm afraid that this vehicle was not intended for extended deployment. They are still alive, but I must get them to safety before the pod's oxygen is completely depleted."

"Roger that," answer Jimmy. "Home in on my signal."

"Affirmative," answered the voice. "We should reach you in approximately -"

The reply was interrupted by a squeal of static that made all within range of the sound cover their ears in pain. When the squeal ended Jimmy tried to communicate again. "What was that? Your message broke up. Is something wrong?"

"I'm not sure, sir," said the voice. "It appears that some of the pod's energy systems have been pre-empted."

Jimmy gave everyone a puzzled look before answering. "How is that possible?"

"This pod was from Princess Leama's cruiser and is equipped with security codes to keep it from falling into the hands of potential enemies. Someone who knows those codes could override the ships critical systems. It appears that the ship's main reactor core has been programmed to overload."

"What? But who…" Jimmy's voice faded as the only possible answer came to him. He swung to face Captain Valtor, who was standing by his scooter. "It was you."

"Yes." The Felangian did not seem triumphant or even relieved, simply resigned. "My duty is to protect the princess, at all costs. I've used my personal override code to command the pod's power core to overload. The pod will self-destruct in two minutes, before it can harm any of us."

"I order you to abort that command!" Princess Leama snapped.

"Please don't make this harder for me, Your Highness," Captain Valtor answered, "or anyone else of you. My duty is to protect the royal family, in spite of themselves if need be. I failed before because I forgot that."

Libby stepped forward, pleading with the Captain of the Guard to reconsider. "But Carl and Tee may be on that ship!"

"I know that!" Valtor clenched his fists in impotent torment. "Don't you wish that I could believe that? Don't you wish that I could be sure? But my duty is my duty. I can't ignore that."

"And what about trust?" asked Jimmy. "You said that without trust to guide it, duty had no purpose. It's easy to talk about trust without ever putting it to the test. But this time you have to decide what it is that you can trust and how to find it."

There was only a minute or so remaining. A leader trained to command, Captain Valtor was beset with the nightmare of being a leader of decision not knowing how to reach a decision. In desperation he thumbed a switch on his scooter's console and spoke into the communicator. "Felangian shuttle pod. This is Captain Valtor of the Felangian Royal Guard. I cannot permit you to approach this asteroid." He paused and went on more deliberately. "Not until I know for certain who you're working for. Even try to touch those controls, and I'll turn you into slag." His message sent, he waited tensely. Almost, Cindy thought, as though he were hoping that some answer would come.

As seconds ticked down the voice replied, almost calmly. "I understand sir. You must make a decision. And so must I. I only hope, sir, that you are as equally sure of your decision."

Uncharacteristic emotion flooded the High Captains face as he touched several buttons in quick succession. "Felangian shuttle pod, this is Captain Valtor. Exjay Nine, you are cleared to land."

End of Chapter 35


	36. Epilogue

The Network Strikes Back

by Gary D. Snyder

Epilogue:

After the tension that had preceded the shuttle pod's landing, the events following its touchdown were anticlimactic. As Exjay Nine had reported the pod's limited life support had given out not long after leaving the Video Star, and both the craft's oxygen level and temperature had dropped to dangerous levels. Both Carl and Tee had been semi-conscious when the pod landed on the small asteroid but quickly recovered under the influence of the artificial environment generated by the various ships. Cindy, who knew firsthand what the experience of near-freezing suffocation was like, was particularly relieved to see Carl and Tee revive.

"Are you okay?" she asked. "We thought you were both dead."

"I ain't dead," Tee objected. "I ain't never been dead. Why do you fools keep thinking I'm dead? Do you want me to be dead? Hmmm? Hmmm?"

"No, not at all," Zix quickly reassured him. "It's just that when we saw your scooter go spinning into the space station, we just…well…we just assumed the worst."

"It was pretty awful," agreed Travoltron. "Right after we saw it broadcast at Boracho's Cantina, Boracho said a few words and had us all drink a toast in your memory."

Tee seemed genuinely touched. "Really? That was real nice of him."

"Not really," said Zix. "What he said was, 'Dat bum still ain't paid orf his tab'."

"And he made everyone pay for the drinks they used for the toast," added Travoltron.

"It's the thought that counts," Tee asserted, then heaved a heavy sigh. "Still, it's too bad I couldn't see it."

Zix and Travoltron each threw a sympathetic arm around Tee's shoulders. "No worries, big guy," Zix assured him. "The way you keep rushing off to help people in trouble nowadays, you'll probably get killed off again in no time."

"Really? You think so?" asked Tee, his face lighting up again.

Travoltron nodded vigorously. "No doubt about it."

"Well, I can always hope. But next time," he warned his friends, "you'd better take some pictures to show me afterwards. Or else I'll squish your heads. Squish 'em good. Get it?"

"Got it," Zix and Travoltron hurriedly assured him.

"Good." Tee glowered at them and then suddenly grabbed each of them in a powerful arm, crushing them to him in a ferocious bear hug and made them gasp for breath. "I love you, fools!" he declared, on the verge of tears.

Carl appeared to be more withdrawn, and didn't say much despite Jimmy and Sheen's barrage of questions as to how he managed survive his lone adventure on the Video Star, much less escape it. "If it's okay, guy, I really don't feel like talking about it," he finally told them.

"Well, okay," Jimmy told him, puzzled. "But if you feel like talking, we'll always be here for you."

"You know it," agreed Sheen, then added. "Except, of course, during Ultra Lord's usual primetime broadcast, the encore showing right after that, the weekday syndicated showtimes, and of course the weekend marathons." He did a double-take at Libby's accusing stare and spread his hands. "What? It's not like he actually _died_, you know. Now if he had died I could understand missing a couple of the reruns, but -" He broke off in a yelp of pain as Libby grabbed him by the ear and marched him off, protesting vigorously. "Hey, stop that! I have hands, you know!" His voice reached strident crescendo. "_You call yourself a girlfriend?!_"

When the others had drifted away Princess Leama came up to Carl. "Hello, Carl."

As with most encounters between human boys and girls Leama was the person Carl most wanted to see and yet dreaded seeing. "Uh…hello, Princess."

"Call me Lee." The princess sighed. "None of the other Royal Guard ever do."

Carl fidgeted uncomfortably. "I know. It must be pretty hard sometimes, being all alone."

"Sometimes. I just wish there was someone I could just talk to, you know? Someone who wouldn't care that I was a princess and would tell me anything they were thinking. Someone like you."

"Umm…yeah." Carl squirmed, emotionally and physically, on the horns of a dilemma. He had promised he wouldn't tell the truth about Lord Versile. He had even crossed his heart and that, to Carl, would be blasphemy to break. But Leama had always trusted him to be honest with her. He wished that there were some way that he could somehow ask Jimmy what to do without actually saying what he needed advice about. As Carl struggled to reconcile these feelings he looked at Leama, who at that moment was enjoying the rare luxury of just being young and with a trusted friend, free for the moment of the worries and responsibilities that he knew must so often weigh her down. Carl sighed heavily, reluctantly accepting what he had to do. If he told her the truth, he knew she would never be free of the knowledge of what her father had done, even though he had tried, at the end, to redeem himself in some measure. As heavy a burden as the truth might be, he would be the one to bear it for her. It was more, he knew, than just an obligation he carried as a member of the Royal Guard. It was just one of the many silent sacrifices that every true friend made for another.

He suddenly realized that Leama was watching him, a curious look on her face. "Are you all right?"

"What?" Carl tried to collect himself and sound convincing. "Oh, yeah. Fine. I guess I'm just a little tired, or something."

Leama thought she understood. "The trip back here. I guess the life support failing was quite an ordeal for you."

"Yeah. Let's go with that." He tried to think of something to say, and somehow blurted out, "What was your father like?"

"My father?" The princess seemed startled. "I don't know, really. I guess you never really try to describe your father. You don't _think_ about how he is, you just _know_ how he is. And the things you remember are things that are hard to describe. The way he would laugh when you were being silly, or kiss your forehead when he put you to bed, or even the tone of his voice when he didn't approve of something you'd done. You never really think much about them while they're still here. You think they'll be here forever. But when those things are gone…it's like a part of you is gone also."

Leama had gotten out the last few words with difficulty, choking back tears as she said them. Carl quickly put an arm around her and she leaned into him. "I'm sorry," he said. "I shouldn't have asked."

"No. It's all right." The princess wiped her eyes and gave Carl a little smile. "It's if I won't feel anything that it will be wrong. Some people – Captain Valtor, for example – think that I'm a lot like my father. If you know what I'm like, then I guess you probably know what my father was like." She studied Carl's face very carefully, and Carl wondered how much she was reading there. "It's too bad you never met him," she finally commented. "I think you would have liked him."

"Yes," he replied, somewhat absently. "I think I would have."

Not far away Cindy had followed Betty as she headed back with most of the kids to the motley assortment of makeshift spacecraft that had once been amusement park rides. "Hold it, right there, Quinlan," she called.

Betty turned and met Cindy's hot anger with a cool stare. "Yes?"

Cindy moved forward until she and Betty were only a couple paces apart. "What's the big idea?" she demanded.

"'Big idea'?" The older girl seemed genuinely puzzled. "What are you talking about?"

"Not long ago you said that Neutron was all mine," fumed Cindy. "So what's with your cozying up to him like that?"

"I was just being supportive, is all," Betty argued. "Is there a problem with a friend doing that?"

"Supportive?" Cindy almost grazed Betty's nose with hers as she leaned forward. "If you were any more supportive the Serta people could sell you as a mattress." Cindy planted her hands on her hips. "So tell me straight. Are you making a play for Jimmy or not?"

"Me?" Betty laughed easily which made Cindy all the more uncomfortable. "No, I'd never do that. I said he's all yours, and he is. But there is something you should know."

"And that is…?"

Betty folded her arms and her expression, while still amiable, became inscrutable. "Just this. I've been doing a lot of thinking lately. Guys like Jimmy don't come along every day. Only a fool wouldn't seriously consider the possibilities, and I'm no fool. So, yes, like I said, he's all yours, Cindy. The ball's totally in your court. But…" Betty's smile faded and her tone became deadly earnest. "…you'd better bring your A game. Because if you fumble this, if you dump Jimmy, then all bets are off. I'll be there to catch him before he even hits the ground. And I'm going to be sure that he knows that."

"Really?" Cindy addressed Betty with equal civility. "Well, don't count on that happening, Quinlan. Because, as flighty as Neutron can be sometimes, there's something he already knows that has you beat hands down, Quinlan."

"And what would that be, Vortex?" Betty asked politely.

Cindy gave a smile that, while pleasant enough, Betty could read all too well. "That I'll always be there when it matters."

While Betty and Cindy were deciding Jimmy's future, he had sought out Exjay Nine in an attempt to learn more about Carl's miraculous escape and found him in conversation with Captain Valtor. "Am I interrupting anything?" asked Jimmy.

"No, Master Jimmy," replied the robot. "We were discussing how unlikely it was that things turned out the way it did."

This piqued Jimmy's curiosity. "How so?"

"Well," Captain Valtor said, "that I would find a way to convince myself that the pod really wasn't a trap and that it was Exjay Nine who was communicating with us."

"How did you know?" asked Jimmy.

"He said something that he had said to me once before, under similar circumstances," replied Exjay Nine.

"And his reply was the same," the High Captain concluded. "It convinced me that I was speaking to Exjay Nine, and that he could be trusted."

"Under the circumstances," the robot postulated, "is it not unlikely that the survival of Sir Wheezer, Mister Tee, and myself would hinge on the occurrence of such an improbable event?"

Jimmy considered it. "When you think about it, there are an infinite number of possibilities for every situation, and only one actually occurs. So I think that, in the final analysis, every outcome is the result of a series of improbable events," he concluded.

"Logical," Exjay Nine agreed.

Captain Valtor appeared skeptical. "So you believe that what we experienced and what finally happened was due to chance, and nothing more?"

"Not at all." Jimmy shook his head.

"But I thought you said -" the Felangian began.

"Let me explain, "Jimmy hurried to say. "It's true that we can't control the Universe and everything we might experience. But our lives are a continuing search for answers – the meaning of life, the nature of good and evil, or just for something that's missing in our lives. Captain Valtor, I know that you didn't really think much of humans or even Exjay Nine when this all started."

Captain Valtor looked almost ashamed. "Yes, I have to confess that I did not. But I have learned much since then and sincerely apologize."

"No apology necessary," Jimmy assured him. "But consider this. You needed to be able to trust us if we were going to succeed. Whether you knew it or not, you were looking for reasons to trust us – or not, as the case might be. In light of that, you could consider that everything that happened and everything you witnessed became a test of whether or not you could trust others. Is it so surprising then that some key events came down to your ability to trust?"

The Felangian reflected on this before answering. "Put in those terms, no," he admitted. "I suppose that maybe we all experienced what we needed to experience."

Exjay Nine asked, "And is this limited only to organics?"

"I don't see why it should be," Jimmy replied. "I mean, aren't robots also seeking answers? Whether there is a First Creator? Or a purpose beyond programming? If mechanicals are seeking answers, I'd say that they'd find them."

The robot looked down at a twisted piece of metal in its hand. What's its purpose had once been was not clear to Jimmy, but its shape suggested that it may have once part of a spherical metallic casing. "Yes," Exjay Nine ventured at last. "I would say that they would."

Jimmy had almost forgotten that he had wanted to ask Exjay Nine about the Carl's and the others' escape from the Video Star. Before he could ask, however, Zix sidled up and coughed hesitantly. "What's up, Zix?" Jimmy asked, postponing his questions to Exjay Nine for another day.

"Well, Jimmy, it's like this," the reptilian began hesitantly. "Those weapons we got were pretty cheap, but not exactly free. Our generous suppliers did insist on a couple conditions should we come out on top in exchange for letting us use them."

"Oh? Such as?"

Zix handed Jimmy a folded piece of paper, which Jimmy opened and skimmed. He smiled and gave Zix a reassuring nod. "No problems," he said. "I'll get right on it once we get home."

Several weeks later, in a particularly bad section of Mos Slimey, a cloaked and hooded form in a private room sipped the diluted beverage before him impatient indifference. The surroundings were not of his choosing, but his potential backers had insisted that their business be conducted there, or not at all. Beggars can't be choosers, the solitary figure accepted philosophically, but once he had the money he needed and was back on top he would be calling the shots once again. He looked up as the door opened, flooding the soundproof chamber with the clamor of the general saloon outside and admitting the bar's proprietor.

"They are here," the hexapod who owned the establishment reported.

"Excellent," the room's occupant acknowledged. "Show them in." The owner dropped a complicated curtsey with four of his six legs, and withdrew. "And would it kill you to freshen these snacks?" the secretive figure called as the door closed again. _Whatever_, he thought. In just a few minutes he would have enough quatloos to never have to enter a sleazy dive like this again. When the noise from the saloon once again briefly intruded, indicating that his financial backers had entered the room, he looked up. "I'd like to thank you -" he began, and froze at the sight of the three beings standing before him.

"Hello, Meldar," the Junkman greeted him pleasantly, a large container under one arm.

"So good to see you," King Goobot agreed.

"I trust you're happy to see us as well," concluded Khormak.

"Hi, guys," Meldar replied. "This is somewhat…that is to say, I was expecting some business associates. I must have made some mistake."

"Oh, no, no mistake," the Yolkian assured him. "We're the ones who contact you."

The Junkman and Goobot flanked Meldar as Khormak sat down opposite him. "Admittedly we used some assumed names. It seems that you haven't been returning our calls."

"But…but how did you find me?" Meldar stammered, trying with little success to keep an eye on all three of his former business associates. Calling out for help was not an option. Any sound would not pass beyond the door.

"Well, admittedly we wouldn't have been able to do it," the Junkman replied. "But there's a certain bright you man for whom we did a favor he was happy to do a couple of favors in return for us. He was actually able to locate you fairly quickly. Did you know that the energy of those matrix generators of which you're so fond leave a faint but very unique energy signature on whoever uses them? And there are only a handful of beings in this whole quadrant that have done so. Once we knew your location, it was easy to arrange a meeting."

Despite his fear Meldar seethed with anger. "Neutron!" he spat. "You're actually working with him?"

"Call it a temporary truce," King Goobot clarified. "Have you ever hear the saying 'the enemy of my enemy is my friend'? I'm afraid that we've all lost a good deal of money because of this decidedly unprofitable business investment."

Meldar swallowed hard. "Listen, guys," the frightened alien ventured, "if it's your money that you're worried about, then I've got a lot more ideas that will get it back in no time at all. There's no need to get mad."

"Oh, don't worry about that," the Junkman smiled. The smile hardened into a vicious grin. "We don't get _mad_." He opened the container, pulled out a device that looked something like cross between a bicycle without wheels and a cross-country ski machine, and placed it carefully on the floor.

Meldar stared wordlessly and had to try three times before he could get the words out. "Is that…is that an…"

"An Electron Toner?" Khormak finished. "Not exactly."

"That was the second favor that bright young man did for us," King Goobot explained. "It's the new and improved Turbo Toner."

"Yes," the Junkman chuckled. "Twice the results, in half the time." He paused to let the Meldar consider the various implications of this statement before dropping the other shoe. "At four times the voltage."

Despite the practically non-existent chances for success Meldar bolted for the door in a desperate attempt to escape. The Junkman, anticipating this, seized the little alien before he could clear the table. With two hands he held his struggling captive in place and with the other two clamped Meldar's wrists to the machine's vertical poles. "You can't do this to me!" Meldar shrilled.

"Oh, don't be so negative, Meldar," the Junkman said. "What say we give it a try, hmm?"

King Goobot removed the remote from the container. "May I do the honors?"

"I'd be offended if you didn't," replied Khormak.

King Goobot activated the Turbo Toner, sending powerful shocks through Meldar and causing him to jerk wildly about like a demented puppet. After a few seconds the electric shocks ended, leaving Meldar limp and temporarily unable to speak. "Oh, yes, this will be a big seller," the Yolkian commented with satisfaction.

"Mech-Vanna will be so pleased," the Junkman observed.

"Mech…Mech-Vanna?" Meldar whispered hoarsely.

"Oh, didn't we tell you?" the Junkman asked apologetically. "Yes, she leaped at the chance to work with you again when we discussed this new product. It seems that she had a number of friends on that space station of yours. You know…those 'worthless drones', every one of which you were willing to sacrifice to put on your show?" He chuckled. "Oh, yes, she was extremely eager to work with you again."

"And by my calculations, your round-the-clock infomercials and on-air demonstrations should sell enough of the Turbo Toner units to repay us all in, oh…" Khormak performed some quick estimates in his head. "…say, fifteen or twenty Earth years."

Meldar let out a faint sob. "You realize that this is going to kill me, don't you?"

The Junkman lifted the exercise machine and Meldar into the soundproof container. "I wouldn't say that," he assured the hapless alien as he lowered the lid. "After all, you'd be surprised what you can live through." With a smile of satisfaction he shut the container, secured the latches, and swung the container onto a massive shoulder.

"He did raise a good point, you know," King Goobot pointed out as the three exited the room.

Khormak considered it. "That is true," he admitted. "What happens if this machine does kill him before we get all our money back?"

The Junkman scoffed as they headed out into the squalid streets of Mos Slimey. "Neutron assured me that that can't possibly happen. And if it should somehow happen, well…" He shrugged, bouncing the container and its contents slightly. "That's show biz."

THE END

Author's Notes:

I never intended or foresaw when I started this story that it would take nearly two years to finish. However, much as in the story, authors can't really foresee things that will happen to them any more than the characters can in the stories.

As you noted in this chapter things are heating up a bit between Cindy and Betty. I personally like Betty as I don't consider her a bad or manipulative person I can't believe that she hasn't considered the possibilities with Jimmy. Some future stories will build on this and lead to an eventual resolution, but just what I can't say. What I can say is that in the past couple years I have been developing new story ideas to work on should I find more time now to write them. These stories include Cindy facing a killing machine from the future a la "The Terminator", the final installment of the Lou trilogy, a story titled, appropriately enough, "I, Brobot", the return of Dyno Lad with an appearance by the N-Men, and a couple others.


End file.
